Read on Twitter
ROUND TWO: RUSSIA AND RELIGIOUS INFLUENCE IN THE US (1987)--"The U.S.S.R. is very interested in influencing U.S. religious organizations and their leaders. This campaign represents Soviet awareness that such institutions are important factors in the formation of public opinion" https://twitter.com/NovelSci/status/1503067975246651404
2/ "One method of assuring a close working relationship between the organizations is overlap of personnel. For example, the current president of the CPC, Bishop Karoly Toth of Hungary, is also a member of the Presidential Committee of the World Peace Council.."
3/ "As part of the Soviet-directed effort to make contact with and influence religious groups, CAREE has increasing contacts with the National Council of Churches and other U.S. religious organizations."
4/ "One of the obstacles to effective Soviet influence of U.S. religious communities is widespread knowledge about the U.S.S.R.’s persecution of its own religious groups... Moscow has initiated a campaign to convince the world that there is religious freedom in the Soviet Union."
5/ "The U.S.S.R. Council for Religious Affairs is responsible for maintaining overall control of church-state relations in the U.S.S.R.. It is also active in attempting to influence U.S. religious groups’ perceptions of religious freedom in the U.S.S.R"
6/ "For example, during October 1986, Konstantin M. Kharchev, chairman of the Council for Religious Affairs, visited Minneapolis, Minnesota, and participated in a three-day conference on religious tolerance."
7/ "Moscow utilizes the AUCECB in its contacts with evangelical and fundamentalist Christians in the U.S. to improve its image abroad and promote Soviet foreign policy goals." NOTE: overcoming perception of Russia was necessary to influence these groups.
8/ Religious figures from Russia, "fluent in English...act as spokesmen for the Kremlin. Occasionally they attend meetings of various Baptist groups in the U.S., using the opportunity to spread propaganda and disinformation about religious freedom in the Soviet Union."
9/ "The USPC, the U.S. affiliate of the WPC, also contributes to Soviet efforts to influence and manipulate the American religious community by actively establishing and promoting a Religious Circles Committee."
10/ "Soviet active measures in the U.S. are designed to influence public opinion and perceptions of Soviet foreign policy goals-particularly defense-related goals." This could look like promoting nuclear disarmament within the US or promoting isolationist US foreign policy.
11/ These Soviet active measures are artfully coupled with propaganda campaigns... Recent Soviet active measures are more subtle...The use of “fronts of fronts,” for example, insulates...U.S.-based organizations and helps obfuscate the financing and direction provided by Moscow."
12/ Oligarchs close to Putin have formed close ties with American religious communities and those communities -- potentially unwittingly-- have drifted toward policy decisions that benefit the Kremlin. https://www.splcenter.org/hatewatch/2018/05/16/how-world-congress-families-serves-russian-orthodox-political-interests
13/ And it is also true that in 1987 we assessed that Russia would influence through international conferences, relationships, and change those religious groups' perception of Russia. https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/lesterfeder/emails-show-pro-family-activists-feeding-contacts-to-russian#.llQ2Y5PBQ
14/ In the 2010s the WCF became increasingly linked to ...prominent advocates for Russian expansionism. A key oligarch and financier for Putin's ventures, the fluent English speaker spent his time mingling with leaders of the US evangelical movement. https://archive.ph/20190208032139/https://www.ft.com/content/84481538-1103-11e4-94f3-00144feabdc0#selection-2019.32-2019.236
15/ When the same oligarch funding WCF also funded the invasion of Crimea, WCF canceled: "The foregoing is not meant to reflect negatively on the Russian people, churches...fight to preserve life, marriage, and the natural family at home." https://web.archive.org/web/20220131114555/http://www.christiannewswire.com/news/372773850.html#:~:text=The%20foregoing%20is%20not%20meant%20to%20reflect%20negatively%20on%20the%20Russian%20people%2C%20churches%20or%20individuals%20who%20have%20taken%20a%20leadership%20role%20in%20the%20fight%20to%20preserve%20life%2C%20marriage%2C%20and%20the%20natural%20family%20at%20home%20and%20as%20part%20of%20the%20international%20pro%2Dfamily%20movement.
16/ But then, many of the same people held a new event with a different name that they claimed was unaffiliated with WCF. What's weird about it then is that it was the WCF newsletter that advertised it. https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/1284039-wcfjune2014newsletter.html
17/ They wrote: "We are proud of the accomplishments of our Russian Partners, and applaud the moves of the Russian people... to protect life, the family, and the innocence of children." Despite the invasion of Crimea, Americans went to the conference.
18/ A Russian organizer contradicted WCF's story, telling Russian state media the event was planned “with the participation of…the World Congress of Families.” https://web.archive.org/web/20201028140639/https://www.ng.ru/facts/2014-07-16/1_international.html
20/ The US eventually sanctioned a key source of funding for the WCF -- Malofeev--because he funded the invasion of Crimea, private militias, and two of his ex-employees controlled the separatists’ military and political operations. https://www.treasury.gov/press-center/press-releases/Pages/jl9729.aspx
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/09637494.2020.1796172
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/09637494.2020.1796172
19/ "A main objective of the WCF’s demographic scare tactics is to convert nationalism into natalism and thereby mobilize a larger anti-abortion, “natural family” base." https://politicalresearch.org/2015/01/21/natural-deception-conned-by-the-world-congress-of-families#sthash.Em2cJr0V.MxeVJtSa.dpbs
20/ "WCF’s influence at the U.N. relies...on ties with Russia...Carlson’s work on the ”demographic winter”—the idea of a crisis for the "natural family”—has proven to be particularly effective in garnering favor with Russia’s conservative leadership."
21/ From this theory used to stoke concern about population decline comes rationale for policies against abortion (which did not lead to small families by the way, and neither did hormonal contraception), against immigration, and against rights for women. https://twitter.com/NovelSci/status/1501950211882557443
22/ "The WCF also involves itself in junk science... organized a Moscow Demographic Summit in 2011 talking about the harms of abortions on women’s health, credited with a slew of restrictions to reproductive rights in Russia." https://www.splcenter.org/fighting-hate/extremist-files/group/world-congress-families
23/ American orgs that paid dues to WCF: Focus on the Family, Family Research Council, Alliance Defense Fund (now Alliance Defending Freedom), Americans United for Life, and the National Organization for Marriage. This expanded WCF and Russia's reach. https://politicalresearch.org/2015/01/21/natural-deception-conned-by-the-world-congress-of-families#:~:text=Well%2Dknown%20and%20well%2Dfunded%20American%20organizations%20such%20as%20Focus%20on%20the%20Family%2C%20Family%20Research%20Council%2C%20Alliance%20Defense%20Fund%20(now%20called%20Alliance%20Defending%20Freedom)%2C%20Americans%20United%20for%20Life%2C%20and%20the%20National%20Organization%20for%20Marriage%20signed%20on%20as%20dues%2Dpaying%20partners%2C%20expanding%20WCF%E2%80%99s%20reach
24/ Leaked emails "provide a rare look into how the U.S.-based WCF network operates and how its Russian representatives seek to impact American political and judicial discourse." One example was talk of bringing Christian persecution stories to the US. https://www.splcenter.org/hatewatch/2018/05/16/how-world-congress-families-serves-russian-orthodox-political-interests#:~:text=email%20provides%20a%20rare%20look%20into%20how%20the%20U.S.%2Dbased%20WCF%20network%20operates%20and%20how%20its%20Russian%20representatives%20seek%20to%20impact%20American%20political%20and%20judicial%20discourse.
25/ The now sanctioned Oligarch who funded the annexation of Crimea and a global religious influence network, thought the persecution story would mobilize US Christians, presumably to serve his aims. He has also shared, “I want the Russian Empire back." https://archive.ph/20190208032139/https://www.ft.com/content/84481538-1103-11e4-94f3-00144feabdc0#selection-2065.100-2065.132
