Russia-related networks in Estonia Part 2

05.06.2018

We continue to give an overview of the organizations and individuals involved in anti-Estonian activities with trying to split up the country as noted in the KAPO yearbook. This time we drew an Estonian branch to the Kremlin media machine diagram.

Network 3 „ Propaganda media handlers“

The network includes organizations working as administration on the propaganda portals Baltnews and Baltija.eu. The role of such portals is to be gatherers producing daily material related to Estonia with mixed truths, biased reporting, trivialities and lies. Such stories are distributed through intermediary portals to Russia’s major propaganda media, where they are amplified into large-scale propaganda attacks

Organizations

NGO Baltnews Media, NGO Altmedia and NGO People’s Sense of Justice

Key individuals

Aleksandr Kornilov is the central person of the network that manages Baltnews; he also belongs to the boards of other non-profit organizations. The KAPO yearbook has repeatedly written about how Russia’s Kornilov media project funds: „ several Rossija Segodnja employees who coordinate the activities of Baltnews propaganda portals towards Russian speaking residents of the Baltic nations as previously mentioned in the Security Police yearbook. They essentially organize all of the work of the portal and the topics it covers. For completing assigned tasks, remuneration is given through various front companies controlled by Rossija Segodnja. The central figure in Baltnews.ee and Baltija.eu, Aleksandr Kornilov, is paid 11400 euros monthly through tax free companies.“ Kronilov has recently become newsworthy by being charged with tax fraud in relation to the NGO’s that he manages.

Irina Kalabina is Aleksandr Kornilov’s sister and is a member of the board of the NGO Altmedia. The NGO established in 2010 has received money for the implementation of Kremlin media projects in Estonia. Kalabina has received media coverage due to her brother’s criminal cases.

Dmitri Kornilov and Aleksandr Kornilov head the non profit organization „People’s Sense of Justice“ whose activities are registered as web portal  operations

Network managed websites

Baltnews.ee

One of the main Russian propaganda portals operating in Estonia, whose main work is anti-Estonian. Established in 2014. The material is published both in Estonian and in Russian, in the hope that Russian language biased stories will run in Russian propaganda media. The Baltnews portal has gained momentum and apparently support in the last year as well as moved the influence of the Russian propaganda network upwards. The anti- Estonian news production unit has become more effective. In May 2017, approximately 170,000 people visited the site (read the number of readership of propaganda portals here).

Baltija.eu
An Russian language portal with outdated views in which the advertising banner partners clicks include the Russian President, the Estonian hostile news agency, Regnum, the Russian compatriots support fund, brotherhood of arms.ee, Rossotrudnitshestvo and many others. The portals central figures are Mstislav Russakovilt, Sergei Seredenkolt, Dmitri Klenskilt and others whose activities have been already repeatedly been written about by Propastop.

Pravfond.eu
A website devoted to Russians living outside of Russia, which today seems to be inactive. The last postings are from the beginning of 2017. One of them concerns the non-profit organization Kitež, a second is Maria Jufereva’s text for free legal aid in Tallinn. The domain shares the same name as the notorious Russians living abroad compatriots’ rights protection and support fund page,  Pravfond.ru

Relations with Russia

The network and related NGOs and portals have continued to receive financial support from Russia. Baltnews is funded by Rossija Segodnja, a Russian national media concern by way of Media Capital Holding BV. These links are described in more detail by the research on the Latvian Re:Baltica website.

According to Inforegister.ee, the turnover of NGO Altmedia in 2015 was approximately 123,000 euros. In 2016, the turnover of NGO Baltnews Media was 136,000 euros and NGO People’s Sense of Justice 9,110 euros.

Read the first part of the Russian related networks, where among other things we describe which methods were used to gather the facts in this story.