Butina worked for Torshin, who has close ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin, and served as his interpreter at various Washington events. The Treasury Department in April imposed sanctions on Torshin and a number of other Russian businessmen and government officials in Putin’s inner circle. Two months earlier, the group’s Russian-born CEO, Dimitri Simes, traveled to Moscow, where he met with Putin and other Russian officials, the organization’s records showed. Among the think tank’s board members is David Keene, a former NRA president and former chairman of the American Conservative Union. Paul Saunders, the think tank’s executive director, said Torshin spoke at an April 2015 event about the Russian banking system and Butina attended.

Source: bd News24 July 22, 2018 09:56 UTC