US posts $10 million reward citing Russian election interference

US posts $10 million reward citing Russian election interference
by AFP Staff Writers
Washington (AFP) Oct 19, 2024

The US State Department is offering a reward of up to $10 million for information leading to any foreign person or entity engaging in election interference, it said just weeks before Americans select their next president.

An announcement from the department's Rewards for Justice program specifically singled out Russian media organization Rybar LLC, which it said used social media to "sow discord, promote social division, stoke partisan and racial discord, and encourage hate and violence in the United States."

There was no immediate reaction from Rybar or Russian authorities.

The State Department said Rybar had established a channel on the X platform called "TexasvsUSA," and used it ahead of the US election to exploit the issue of undocumented immigrants crossing the Texas border.

It said Rybar also used social media channels #HOLDTHELINE and #STANDWTHTEXAS to spread pro-Russian propaganda.

Rybar, it asserted, receives funding from Russian defense industrial organization Rostec, which the US Treasury Department imposed sanctions against in 2022.

"Rybar relies on the connections and funding from Rostec to bolster Russia's military capabilities and advance pro-Russian and anti-Western narratives," the announcement said.

It encouraged anyone with relevant knowledge -- particularly regarding nine named individuals it said helped carry out Rybar's "malign influence operations" over the US election -- to contact the Rewards for Justice tipline.

Rybar operates a channel on the Telegram platform that is popular among the pro-Ukraine-war hardliners of Russia's "Z community" -- with 1.3 million followers.

It was co-founded by Mikhail Zvinchuk, a onetime member of Russia's spetsnaz special forces and former Defense Ministry employee, who has been under European Union sanctions since June 2023.

Offering daily reports on battlefield developments in Ukraine, he has become one of the most famous and influential Russian military bloggers.

In April 2024, Zvinchuk announced the opening of a "Rybar Media School" in Serbia, saying on Telegram: "We have long studied the West's approaches to waging information warfare against us.

"Now is the moment to apply our knowledge and teach our associates the right approaches," he said, adding that this was "just the beginning" of this propaganda strategy in Western countries.