Russia funnelled money to Kremlin supporter in Ukraine via Ireland to bypass sanctions, records show
Kremlin
money into Kyiv and bypass international sanctions, an investigation by The Irish Times has found.
Under the plan, the money would be sent from Moscow to the United States and then to a woman in Ireland who would forward it to a prominent pro-Russian activist imprisoned by
Ukrainian
authorities.
[
How the Kremlin's 'soft power' agency supporting expats overseas skirts sanctions
]
Documents detailing the scheme are contained in a collection of more than 70,000 emails and records concerning the activities of a Kremlin-backed legal fund, which
EU
security agencies say is an extension of Russian intelligence in some countries.
The Fund for the Support and Protection of the Rights of Compatriots Living Abroad, known by its Russian acronym Pravfond, was founded by the Russian government in 2012 and has close links to Russian intelligence officers.
READ MORE
Details of
Pravfond's operations in Ireland
, dating to 2013, were revealed by The Irish Times on Wednesday.
The documents also show Ireland played a role as a waypoint for the transfer of Pravfond funds to other countries.
In April 2023 Sergey Zavorotny, a one-time adviser to Ukraine's former pro-Russia prime minister Nikolay Azarov,
requested funds from Pravfond to pay for medical bills for Elena Berezhnaya, a well-known pro-Russian activist in Ukraine.
Mr Zavorotny had previously acted as press secretary to Mr Azarov, who stood down as prime minister in 2014.
Ms Berezhnaya (72) started receiving at least $3,000 (€2,644) a year from Pravfond via Mr Zavorotny in 2022, after she was arrested by the Ukrainian security services and accused of 'high treason'.
In 2023 Mr Zavorotny told Pravfond it was impossible to get funds to Ms Berezhnaya due to international sanctions.
As a workaround, he proposed that money from Pravfond be transferred to Russian parents whose children were living in the United States.
These funds would then be transferred via money transfer company Western Union, or another payments system, to Dublin where they would be received by a close associate of Ms Berezhnaya living in the northwest whose current whereabouts could not be traced.
This woman would then get the money to Ms Berezhnaya's legal team in Kyiv.
In response to queries, the Russian embassy in Dublin said it 'firmly rejects preposterous allegations made against Pravfond' and accused The Irish Times of 'libel and open Russophobia'.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Times
6 hours ago
- Irish Times
New customers to receive cash instead of energy credits in household benefit scheme
A row has broken out between the Government and the representative body for the electricity industry and gas retail sector over the former's decision to replace energy credits with cash, for new customers, in the Household Benefits Package . From September, new applicants to the scheme will no longer be able to avail of a €35 monthly credit towards their electricity or gas bill, but will instead receive the payment into a nominated bank or post office account. Existing customers can continue to receive the credit unless they seek to change supplier. The Government said the move ensures no provider has 'a perceived advantage over competitors' in the market. However, the Electricity Association of Ireland (EAI) said the credit should be made available to customers of more companies, rather than scrapping it. [ Ending of electricity credits will bite hard this winter Opens in new window ] All people over the age of 70 can apply for the benefits package, while younger people may also be eligible but additional rules apply . Under the scheme, people have the option to put a credit towards their electricity or gas bill, but only if they are customers of Electric Ireland, Bord Gáis Energy or Flogas. READ MORE There are 12 electricity and seven gas suppliers in the domestic market. The Department of Social Protection confirmed all new applicants to the Household Benefits Package will receive a monetary payment towards their energy bill, rather than a credit. 'The decision to remove the credit option for new customers has been taken following an examination of customer behaviour and trends over several years,' said a spokeswoman. 'An increasing number of new customers are opting for the cash option even where the credit option is available. Any existing customers using the credit facility at present can maintain that method of payment.' The spokeswoman said the removal of the credit option for new customers also ensures 'no supplier would have a perceived advantage over competitors in the domestic energy market'. EAI chief executive Dara Lynott has accused the Government of 'going for the easier option' instead of implementing targeted measures that would better help people enduring energy poverty. 'If you're intent on targeting customers who need help with energy, and you want to be guaranteed that it gets to the right people, then credits are the way to go,' said Mr Lynott. He said many people who receive the cash will have 'other pressing bills' and may opt not to put the money towards their energy costs. 'They may need petrol for the car and the house still goes cold – so you still have people in energy poverty, even after you've given cash.' Mr Lynott said targeted, long-term measures need to be implemented to help people, rather than universal payments. Figures released to Sinn Féin MEP Lynn Boylan in late July showed that 301,000 households are now in arrears on their electricity bills. [ Households unlikely to receive energy credits and other once-off payments next winter Opens in new window ] From April 2022 until February 2025, households received nine electricity credits worth €1,500 – costing almost €3 billion. However, the Government has ruled out such credits in the forthcoming budget, instead saying it will implement other measures to support households. A Department of Energy spokesperson said the Government is 'keenly aware that energy has been a big driver of costs across the economy, and that price rises over the past number of years impacted almost all householders and businesses'. The Government has established a National Energy Affordability Taskforce to 'identify, assess and implement measures that will enhance energy affordability for households and businesses, while delivering key renewable commitments and protecting security of supply and economic stability'.
Irish Times
7 hours ago
- Irish Times
Student fees: Minister gets barrage of complaints after suggesting €1,000 cut may not happen
More than 120 complaints were sent to Minister for Higher Education James Lawless after he signalled that cuts to third level fees seen in recent budgets may not happen this year. The Fianna Fáil politician suggested in a radio interview that a €1,000 cut to the €3,000 fee might not be repeated in Budget 2026 due to once-off cost of living measures being dropped due to to economic uncertainty. There was a public backlash after his remarks as well as division in the Coalition, with Fine Gael members angry about the controversy the issue generated for the Government. Records released by the Department of Further and Higher Education in response to a Freedom of Information request show some 125 complaints were sent on to Mr Lawless between June 29th and July 9th. READ MORE Of these, 35 were sent to Fine Gael politicians before they were forwarded to Mr Lawless. Thirty-three complaints were sent on to the Minister by the office of Tánaiste Simon Harris , a former minister for higher education. A further 23 complaints were sent on to Mr Lawless after they were received by Fianna Fáil politicians. During an interview on RTÉ radio on June 29th, Mr Lawless was asked about cuts in student fees. He replied: 'All of us in any walk of life play the hands we're dealt. If I don't have a cost of living package, I can't do those kind of measures that were done last year.' He pointed out other supports available and said he did 'absolutely intend to wind down the student contribution fee over the lifetime of the Government'. [ Third level fees row looks set to rumble on for a while Opens in new window ] More than 120 complaints were sent to Minister for Higher Education James Lawless following the comments. Photograph: Nick Bradshaw/ The Irish Times Many of the parents and students who complained wrote directly to Mr Lawless. One parent asked for the fee to be kept at €2,000. 'I do strongly feel that we are the squeezed middle in society, that work hard, pay [our] contributions and get on with things. But we are far from financially secure.' A student working to fund their education wrote that they were 'quite outraged' and that a return to higher fees 'may mean that I will not be able to enter my third year'. Student nurses were among those who sent some co-ordinated complaints. Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO) general secretary Phil Ní Sheaghdha wrote that the 'mooted increase will have a detrimental impact on student nurses and midwives'. One of the complaints sent on to Mr Lawless by Mr Harris's office was from a parent with two children in third level education. 'Dear Mr Harris, I would like to tell you about my home tonight. My 21-year-old daughter started crying and apologised for the cost to us to send her to college,' they wrote. A complaint sent on to Mr Lawless from Taoiseach Micheál Martin's office was from a parent who said fee reductions of recent years had 'helped enormously to reduce the financial burden on our family'. Of the possible return to €3,000 fees, they said: 'I think Fianna Fáil has taken its eye off the ball.' A spokesman for Mr Lawless said the Minister was 'acutely aware of the financial pressures facing students and families' and he was 'currently reviewing pre-budget submissions'. He said Mr Lawless will enter budget negotiations 'seeking the strongest possible package of student supports, with a particular focus on those most in need, while also securing sustainable, permanent reforms rather than one-year interventions'. He also said Mr Lawless would be 'fighting hard for measures that reduce the cost of education'. The spokesman added that the Minister extended thanks to correspondents and he has offered to review 'individual cases to understand why they were not already availing of supports given that the current income threshold is at a historic high of €115,000. This means the majority of families in the State are now eligible for support.' A spokeswoman for the Taoiseach said: 'Government will be examining ways to support those in third level education in the upcoming budget. Matters related to the Budget will be negotiated over the coming weeks.'
Irish Times
8 hours ago
- Irish Times
Former Fianna Fáil councillor ‘recklessly' failed to disclose son's interest in lands, ethics watchdog finds
A former Fianna Fáil councillor who failed to disclose his son's interest in lands before a vote that would 'significantly increase' their value, contravened ethics rules and 'acted recklessly', the Standards in Public Office Commission (Sipo) has found. Tommy Reilly, who was a councillor in Meath for almost three decades, was the subject of a complaint received in March 2022 over 'acts and omissions' concerning lands at Liscarton in Navan . Those lands were owned by his son, Ciarán Reilly, and had increased in value from €500,000 to some €4.2 million, at which they were marketed for sale in 2020 following the rezoning for housing and the granting of planning permission. Ciarán Reilly purchased the lands in 2016, telling the commission during a hearing in June that while he had not initially purchased the lands as an investment for development, he later formed the view that they may be an investment opportunity. READ MORE He told the commission he did not discuss the Liscarton lands with his father until June or July 2017, when he inquired about the proposed rezoning and development plan process. He held the interest in the lands through his company RABS, the director of which ultimately became his brother, Tomás Reilly. Tommy Reilly attended several meetings concerning the lands between July 2016 and July 2017 while a councillor, according to the Sipo report published on Tuesday. He told the commission he did not learn of his son's beneficial interest in the lands until July 2017, about two weeks before the special planning meeting, saying he did not generally discuss his son's business interests with him. After questions from his son regarding making a submission, Mr Reilly said he told him it was too late to make one, and that he 'could have nothing to do with it'. The commission said it was not persuaded by the evidence provided by Mr Reilly and his two sons and found itself 'unable to rely on it'. Mr Reilly said he spoke to a council official before the special planning meeting in July 2017. He said he proceeded to declare that he had a conflict of interest, which was recorded in the minutes, and excused himself from the vote. However, he did not disclose the nature of his interest or the fact of his sons' interest. Mr Reilly told the commission that in 30 years, he had never seen anyone do that at a meeting. He added that three years after the meeting, in September 2020, he wrote to the council's ethics registrar, disclosing the nature of the conflict of interest. A review carried out by then chief executive of the council, Jackie Maguire, found 'there was compliance with the spirit but not the letter' of the Ethical Framework for Councillors and that he had 'inadvertently breached' the framework. The commission said Mr Reilly's failure to disclose his son's interest in the lands at the special planning meeting was a contravention that was 'committed recklessly' and was a 'serious matter'. Noting that the vote at the special planning meeting was likely to 'significantly increase' the value of the land owned by his son, the commission said Mr Reilly 'acted recklessly' in not declaring his son's interest. 'As a long-standing councillor of 21 years' service at the time, and with all the experience that entails, the commission finds that he should have known better and, if he was in doubt, should have sought specific advice beforehand,' it said.
