Human Rights Accountability Global Initiative
The Human Rights Accountability Global Initiative Foundation (HRAGI or HRAGIF) is a Washington, D.C.–based lobby group, nominally focused on restoring American adoption of Russian children.[1][2][3] It is being investigated as part of the 2017 Special Counsel investigation.[1][2] It is reportedly defunct.[4]
History
[edit | edit source]The organization was registered in Wilmington, Delaware on February 16, 2016, with two nominal employees.[4][5] The organization rented the Newseum to screen Andrei Nekrasov's The Magnitsky Act – Behind the Scenes, a film aimed at discrediting Sergei Magnitsky.[6][7]
Purpose
[edit | edit source]The nominal purpose of the HRAGI is “to help restart American adoption of Russian children”, though news organizations have reported that its primary purpose was to serve as a vehicle to lobby against international sanctions on Russia.[1][5]
Financing
[edit | edit source]The foundation has received over $500,000 in financing, mostly from Russian politician Petr Katsyv who is the father of Denis Katsyv.[1][8] Other major donors include Russian businessmen Mikhail Ponomarev and Albert Nasibulin, and $100,000 from a German company called Berryle Trading Inc.[1]
Staff
[edit | edit source]The organization was founded by Natalia Veselnitskaya.[9] The HRAGI hired lobbyists, including former Representative Ron Dellums, to lobby against the Magnitsky Act.[1][10] Dellums denied involvement with the group.[11]
Anatoly Samochornov (Russian: Анатолий Самочорнов), who is a Russian-born professional interpreter, is another lobbyist and is a projectmanager for the US State Department.[3][12]
Robert Arakelian was the listed as the President, treasurer, secretary, and director of the Foundation.[13] Though Arakelian is listed as the incorporator of the foundation, he told the FBI that Ed Lieberman and BakerHostetler actually oversaw the incorporation on February 18, 2016.[3][13]
References
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