PART FIVE (CONCLUSION): Assessing Russian propogandist Konstantin Rykov's pro-Trump "confession"

[Tommy_Carcetti]

Last edited Wed May 2, 2018, 04:57 PM - Edit history (2)

**PART ONE can be found here: https://www.democraticunderground.com/100210416264

**PART TWO can be found here: https://www.democraticunderground.com/100210416302

**PART THREE can be found here: https://www.democraticunderground.com/100210430029

**PART FOUR can be found here: https://www.democraticunderground.com/100210567354


Rykov's melodramatic interactions with Anton Nossik were just a part of his online footprint in later years. Since leaving the Russian Duma in 2011, Rykov has moved from being an active participant in mainly Russian online circles to involving himself heavily in western social media, to say nothing about western political affairs.

Rykov's Facebook and Twitter accounts are filled with literally thousands of entries discussing the politics and news of countries worldwide. He would even create specialty Twitter accounts based on a targeted country. In August 2014, Rykov registered the Twitter account @rykov_usa. Besides re-posting a few random clickbait styled articles on topics such as Sex and the City and Chinese "facekinis", Rykov--who adopted the Anglicized "Constantine" first name for account purposes--focused almost exclusively on a single topic , that being political unrest in Ferguson, Missouri following the police shooting of an unarmed black man, Michael Brown. There was no singular message being espoused by Rykov; articles seemed to target both those angry at police as well as those critical of protestors. Rykov's U.S. targeted Twitter account did not appear to gain much traction; in the end, it only attracted 169 followers (mostly fellow Russians) and Rykov abandoned it after only two weeks. However, the account remains active for the public to see.

Rykov's direct social media involvement in other areas of the world proved to be far more substantial. Perhaps his most notorious adventure (prior to his professed involvement in the 2016 US presidential election) came out of France. As Vice News and The Telegraph reported in April 2015, a series of leaked text messages from 2014 between Rykov and Russian internal affairs department head Timur Protopenko have Rykov claiming to have communicated with Marine Le Pen regarding supporting the dubious results of a Crimean referendum supposedly endorsing the Russian annexation of that Ukrainian region following the invasion of the Crimean peninsula by unmarked Russian troops. Once it becomes clear that Le Pen has endorsed the referendum, Rykov remarked to Protopenko that "It will be necessary to thank the French in one way or another." Eight months later, Le Pen's Front National Party received a large loan financed via a Russian bank for their 2017 presidential election campaign fund.

https://news.vice.com/article/leaked-messages-allegedly-show-kremlin-paid-for-french-far-right-leader-to-endorse-crimea-annexation

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/france/11515835/Russia-bought-Marine-Le-Pens-support-over-Crimea.html

But it was another European political referendum that served to underscore an unusual social media dynamic between Rykov and perhaps his most high-profile nemesis and spark a feud that would continue all the way through the 2016 US elections. In September 2014, voters in Scotland went to the polls to decide whether they wished to remain a part of the United Kingdom or, alternately, become fully independent of the Crown. Seeking to legitimize the controversial Crimean referendum earlier that year (that featured none of the electoral safeguards and procedures that the Scottish referendum had) Russian propagandists and trolls glommed onto the measure, hoping that a Scottish schism would damage the UK and the EU. Konstantin Rykov helped lead the charge himself, and on Twitter, temporarily adopted the handle "McRykov." While arguably this was simply a joking tribute to Scottish surnames in general, it's also possible that Rykov intended it as a mocking insult to one of his most common targets of online vitriol: former U.S. Ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul.

As the state of US-Russian relations entered a freefall around the time of Putin's return to the Russian presidency in 2012--with that freefall accelerated after the Obama administration imposed sanctions against Russia in 2014 for their illegal invasion of Ukraine's Crimean region--there were several individuals who were the target of extreme ire amongst the Russian internet community. Naturally President Obama received a brunt of the hatred, as did Secretaries of State Hillary Clinton and John Kerry. Assistant Secretary of State Victoria Nuland, U.S. Ambassador Geoffery Pratt and State Department Spokesperson Jenn Psaki also were routinely roasted over social media by Russian trolls. But Michael McFaul was an entirely different creature from the rest altogether . Far from shy, McFaul (now a professor of political science at Stanford, a position he also held prior to his government service) made it a point to have a very visible presence over social media. Both during his tenure as ambassador and afterwards, McFaul would constantly engage followers in casual conversations with followers.

Most of these conversations were pleasant and conciliatory; however, some were decidedly not. As Ambassador, McFaul was notoriously harassed by Russian state media and saw his own family threatened while in Moscow. His treatment over Twitter was no less ruthless, and Konstantin Rykov was certainly not afraid to join in the fray.

The feud between McFaul and Rykov started in the middle of 2014, and it's clear as to the reasons behind the mutual adversity shared by these social media titans. Rykov saw McFaul as being emblematic of U.S. imperialism and interventionism in the world, a key obstacle to Russian greatness in the former Soviet world. McFaul saw Rykov as epitomizing the Kremlin's strategy of asymmetrical warfare on the West, plugging up the internet with false information and propaganda.

Things would soon come to a head between the two as the Scottish independence referendum drama unfolded in September 2014. Rykov's "McRykov" postings on Twitter failed to make sufficient inroads in the Scottish community, which voted by a 10% margin to remain part of the United Kingdom. Recognizing Rykov's role in attempting to influence public opinion, McFaul couldn't help but spike the football in the end zone and directly rub the results in Rykov's face:



One can debate whether or not a former senior government official taunting a known Russian propogandist was the wisest course of action; however, from that point forward, it was on between McFaul and Rykov. The two sparred over the 2016 election and candidates, with Rykov (and a band of supporting trolls) chiming in to McFaul's commentary on the 2015 Republican primary debates. At one point in September 2015, McFaul adroitly points out, "Pro-Putin bloggers love Trump. Follow @rykov."

But as fascinating as McFaul's willingness to engage Russia's social media army head-on is, it is Rykov's response that is even more notable. Because as Rykov's plot to influence the 2016 U.S. elections from Russia progressed deeper and deeper, Rykov increasingly felt it imperative to actively tag--and mock--McFaul (who Rykov frequently referred to as "the old man" ) as he openly discussed his operations. If anything, this underscores Rykov's modus operandi when it came to the 2016 U.S. elections, he wanted to punish the United States, and let them know they were being punished, regardless of whether Trump would ultimately win or not. A prominent and socially active figure like McFaul was the perfect conduit for a Russian ultra-nationalist like Rykov to brag to the West--to borrow the lyrics of Taylor Swift--"Look what you made me do."

So it was no real surprise that Rykov chose to tag McFaul on November 12, 2016 when he begun to tell his tale about how he claimed to have helped Donald Trump win the White House. And while that posting has slowly but surely garnered some attention amongst the internet universe, another bombshell confession by Rykov to which Rykov knowingly made McFaul privy to has gone by virtually unnoticed so far. And unlike his November 2016 confession, this prior admission occurred right in the thick of the 2016 campaign.

In July 2016, Trump campaign foreign policy advisor Carter Page travelled to Moscow to ostensibly deliver an address before the New Economic School, a think tank known for attracting numerous Western figures. Page has claimed the trip to Moscow was for personal reasons only and was not sanctioned by the Trump campaign itself. However, in a July 7, 2016 Facebook posting--made while Page was still in Moscow--Rykov claims Page "came to Moscow for other reasons." He then goes on to say, "I can only imagine how worried old Michael McFaul is", tagging the former U.S. Ambassador into the post.



That's not the end of it. In the comment section in the post, when prompted by a follower, Rykov admits Page "also came to the intelligence service to understand the reaction to Donald." And in classic "Hi Mom!" fashion, McFaul jumps in and replies with a "Starik", which Rykov himself translates back as "Old friend."



Taken on its face, this is an absolutely stunning exchange that may have direct implications to the Mueller investigation. Here, we have a known Kremlin insider admitting that a member of Trump's campaign came to Moscow not just to deliver a speech on an individual basis, but rather to meet with Russian intelligence services about information pertaining to Donald Trump. All of this was freely admitted in the presence of the former U.S. Ambassador to Russia. And this was all done before Christopher Steele ever reported his intelligence to the FBI in late July 2016 about Page's activities, meaning the Steele Dossier could potentially be independently verified.

As Benjamin Wittes might say, "Boom!"

One would think that McFaul would passed this invaluable information that had fallen directly into his lap onto U.S. intelligence services. And knowing Rykov's propensity to spill the beans about his actions, it's quite possible McFaul wouldn't even have to do that; intelligence may have already been monitoring Rykov's activities on his own. There's nothing whatsoever to suggest that McFaul has been co-opted by the Russian government; his harsh anti-Kremlin statements belie such a possibility. However, it's likely that McFaul knows far more about Rykov and the Kremlin propaganda machine than he is at liberty to publicly discuss. He has, however, officially branded Rykov as a Russian state sponsored agent. And his instant reaction on Twitter to Trump's electoral victory (which he shortly deleted for no specified reason) left no doubt as to Russia being the key the deciding factor in the election: "Putin intervened in our elections and succeeded. (Well done.)"



In the long running McFaul-Rykov feud, it was Rykov who appeared to have gotten the last laugh.


***
In the pre-dawn hours of November 9, 2016, supporters of Donald Trump gathered at the Union Jack Pub in central Moscow, just several blocks away from the Kremlin and Red Square. Customers were decked out in the navy blue Trump-Pence hats and t-shirts that had just arrived days before. Maria Katasonova--always a friend to the cameras--was there, as was Mikhail Kovalev. Also in attendance was Artem Klyushin--who partied hard with Donald Trump during his 2013 Miss Universe pageant visit--although he was without Yulya Alferova, his ex-wife who talked up Trump on Twitter on Election Day 2012 and then went on to personally talk business with Trump in 2013. An author named Cyril Benediktov hawked copies of his Russian language book Black Swan, featuring an ominous looking photo of Donald Trump on the cover. The most curious attendee of them all was Jack Hanick, an original founder of Fox News and friend to Sean Hannity who had moved to Moscow to start his own media company, Tsargrad; Hanick spoke about how both Russia and Trump sought to embrace Christian principles and regain their respective "moral compass".

The purpose of this early morning soiree was of course to celebrate the election of Donald J. Trump to the U.S. presidency, and it was organized--and publicized via Facebook (complete with a mock invite to Michael McFaul)--by none other than Konstantin Rykov.

Partygoers were greeted at the door with the "Triptych", a three paneled painting featuring highly idealized portraits of Marine La Pen, Donald Trump, and Vladimir Putin all stoically looking off into the distance. Televisions inside the British styled pub blared live election coverage from CNN and other western outlets as the results from states rolled in.

A video posted to Youtube several weeks later would capture the mood at the bar that night. As more and more states were called in Trump's favor, enthusiasm of the crowd grew and grew. At one point, Katasonova grasped a fellow supporter's hand in anticipation as results were announced, her eyes watering in tears of unbelief.

And then, at a little after 3:00 in the morning Eastern standard time--or 11:00 a.m. Moscow time--the news everyone had been waiting for came across the television screens; Donald Trump was officially projected to become the 45th President of the United States.

The pub erupted in jubilation. Dmitri Drobinski--a self-described "political scientist" and close associate of Rykov's--exclaims (in English, no less): "We've done it! We've fucking done it!" Drobinski and another supporter named Egor Kholmogorov rise from their seats, and then out of a darkened corner of the bar, like a star actor returning to stage after a curtain call, Rykov emerges wearing a black hoodie jacket over his Trump-Pence t-shirt. Klyushin--who would tweet "For once, I am amazed at the genius of Rykov"--cuts across in the background. Drobinski, Kholmogorov and Rykov meet and embrace, and then break out into song. Fittingly, in this English themed pub, it's from a British band; it's the well-known, often-sung celebratory refrain from Queen's "We are the Champions."

Even approaching two years since the election of Donald Trump, it's still not completely clear how to view Konstantin Rykov. Is he a brilliant mastermind who weaponizes propaganda and shakes up Western political landscapes all for the glory of Mother Russia? Is he nothing more than a self-important braggart who tells big fish stories over the internet? Or is he somewhere in between? That has yet to be determined. Whether his name--or the name of his cohorts--will be mentioned at all in the Mueller investigation is still unknown.

Regardless, it is undisputable that for Rykov, the four-year journey between November 2012 and November 2016 was as remarkable as it was tumultuous: from openly pondering Donald Trump's state of mind on Election Day 2012, to launching subversive social media campaigns in Scotland and France; from the imposition of sanctions against Russia in 2014 for its actions in Ukraine to the development of psychometric tools for Cambridge Analytica; from his online sparring with Ambassador Michael McFaul to his bitter fallout with his former friend Anton Nossik; and ultimately ending up in the morning hours of November 9, 2016 at Moscow's Union Jack Pub, watching Donald Trump "smash America as we know it."

The singing that morning from Rykov and Company was loud, and the message was clear. "We are the champions of the world....."

[dweller]

1. bookmarked, k&r

thanks for the complete set of links to the whole

you do great work tommy ! 👍🏻

[Tommy_Carcetti]

2. Thank you so much!

I guess you might say I'm just a little obsessed.

The story is almost too crazy to be believed, which is why it has virtually flown under the radar for the most part (and as it pertains to the Carter Page tidbit, completely ignored.)

[Tommy_Carcetti]

3. One notable thing: In the excerpt of McFaul's upcoming book....

.....McFaul noted that Putin himself had a very direct animosity towards him.

FWIW.


https://medium.com/freeman-spogli-institute-for-international-studies/from-cold-war-to-hot-peace-3856bb902eed

Only two years later, on a cold, dark day in January 2012, I arrived in Moscow as the new U.S. ambassador to the Russian Federation, charged with continuing the Reset. I had thought about, written about, and worked toward closer relations with the Soviet Union and then Russia since my high school debating days, so this new mission should have been a crowning achievement of my career: an opportunity of a lifetime to further my ideas about American-Russian relations. It was not. On my first day of work at the embassy, the Russian state-controlled media accused President Obama of sending me to Russia to foment revolution. On his evening commentary show, Odnako, broadcast on the most popular television network in Russia, Mikhail Leontiev warned his viewers that I was neither a Russia expert nor a traditional diplomat, but a professional revolutionary whose assignment was to finance and organize Russia’s political opposition as it plotted to overthrow the Russian government; to finish Russia’s Unfinished Revolution, the title of one of my books written a decade earlier. This portrayal of my mission to Moscow would haunt me for the rest of my days as ambassador. A few months later, in May 2012, I accompanied my former boss at the White House, National Security Advisor Tom Donilon, to his meeting with President-elect Putin. This was the first meeting between a senior Obama official and Putin since Putin’s reelection in March 2012. We met at Novo-Ogaryovo, Putin’s country estate, the same place where Obama had enjoyed a cordial, constructive, three-hour breakfast with the then prime minister four years earlier. Putin listened politely to Tom’s arguments for continued cooperation. At some point in their dialogue, however, he turned away from Tom to stare intensely at me with his steely blue eyes and stern scowl to accuse me of purposely seeking to ruin U.S.-Russia relations. Putin seemed genuinely angry with me; I was genuinely alarmed. The hair on the back of my neck stood on end and sweat covered my brow as I endured this tongue-lashing from one of the most powerful people in the world.

In Prague, I had been the author of the Reset, the driver of closer relations with Russia. In Moscow, I was now a revolutionary, a usurper, and Vladimir Putin’s personal foe.

[Tommy_Carcetti]

4. Bumping for this week.

Links to all parts included within.