Trump Appointee Draws Scrutiny Over Kremlin Ties and Dismantling of U.S. Disinformation Unit

[Social Media]

 

Trump Appointee Draws Scrutiny Over Kremlin Ties and Dismantling of U.S. Disinformation Unit

 

Darren Beattie, a senior Trump administration official at the State Department, has come under intense scrutiny over his ties to Russia and a controversial decision to shut down the U.S. government’s main agency fighting Kremlin propaganda. Beattie, who was appointed acting under-secretary for public diplomacy and public affairs in February, is married to a Russian woman whose family has deep ties to the Kremlin.

 

 

The revelations have sparked alarm among U.S. diplomats and national security officials, particularly in light of Beattie's outspoken admiration for Moscow and Beijing and his efforts to dismantle the government’s Counter Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference hub, known as R/FIMI.

 

Beattie, a former Trump speechwriter who was dismissed from the administration in 2018 for reportedly attending a white nationalist event, reemerged as a figure in far-right media circles before returning to government. In 2021, he married Yulia Kirillova, a Russian national educated in Moscow and later in Canada and Washington, D.C. According to public records and social media, her uncle, Sergei Chernikov, is a wealthy Russian businessman with a history of political involvement and a documented relationship with Vladimir Putin.

 

 

Chernikov once received a personal letter of thanks from Putin for his support during the Russian leader’s initial rise to power and later held posts in Russia’s natural resources ministry and as deputy governor in Siberia.

 

The familial connection, combined with Beattie’s history of pro-Kremlin statements, has raised serious questions within the State Department. “The rise of non-woke (China) and anti-woke (Russia) geopolitical competitors to the Globalist American Empire is not a bad thing,” Beattie wrote in October 2021. In other posts, he praised Putin as “brave and strong” and declared that “Nato is a much greater threat to American liberty than Putin ever was.”

 

He even went so far as to say, “The funny thing is just about every Western institution would improve in quality if it were directly infiltrated and controlled by Putin.”

 

Sources within the State Department voiced concerns about Beattie’s security clearance, with some questioning whether he underwent standard vetting procedures. Trump had previously bypassed standard clearance processes during his presidency, citing backlogs. Beattie reportedly took a keen interest in classified information about Russia while pursuing his agenda to dismantle R/FIMI, the agency responsible for countering foreign disinformation from adversaries like Russia, China, and Iran. The unit, which had a modest budget of $50 million, was shuttered in April, with Beattie telling staff it was “severely misaligned” with the administration’s goals.

 

Beattie’s media outlet, Revolver, had long campaigned against R/FIMI, accusing it of operating a “censorship network” aimed at silencing conservative voices. Upon his appointment, Beattie moved quickly to neutralize the agency, cutting off communications, firing contractors, and initiating what some insiders described as a “witch hunt” targeting staff correspondence with journalists and references to Trump and his allies.

 

During the same period, Beattie reportedly sought to reestablish cultural exchange programs with Russia, including initiatives focused on ballet and hockey, raising further concerns about the direction of U.S. diplomacy. MIT Technology Review reported that he also attempted to obtain internal R/FIMI records shortly before its closure, suggesting he aimed to portray the agency as hostile to conservative politics.

 

In a statement, Beattie dismissed the allegations as “malicious defamatory trash that is beneath the standards of even the British tabloid press.” A senior State Department official came to his defense, saying, “No one in America cares about a British gossip column. This is all fake news and low even for tabloid standards. Darren is a tremendous colleague who is committed to advancing President Trump’s America First agenda. In a few short months, he has been able to spearhead high-level projects that have been critical in advancing a foreign policy that puts our national interests first.”

 

Beattie currently holds the role in an acting capacity and would need Senate confirmation to remain in the post permanently. Under federal rules, his tenure is limited to 210 days. Allies have suggested he may be moved to a different position that does not require Senate approval, as questions continue to mount about his background, intentions, and links to foreign powers.

 

  Adapted by ASEAN Now from The Telegraph  2025-06-05

 

 

[Tug]

Sounds like trump got his suggestions straight from Moscow ehh?the guys old lady looks like a tart….thats our trump only the best people ehh?never in my wildest nightmares could I have seen this willfull malfeasance happen to my country.

[JaxxBKK]

Classic hit piece 🤣

[spidermike007]

I cannot believe a Trump appointee is fawning over Putin. So strange. So thoroughly out of place. And he is accused of a lack of integrity? I though the whole administration were devout Christians? Men and women of absolute integrity. I am so disappointed. 

[thaipo7]

26 minutes ago, Tug said:

Sounds like trump got his suggestions straight from Moscow ehh?the guys old lady looks like a tart….thats our trump only the best people ehh?never in my wildest nightmares could I have seen this willfull malfeasance happen to my country.

Sure glad Biden did not cause any malfeasance by letting in up to 20 million illegals.  The US may be 100 years working all this BS out that Biden caused.  But what the hell, Trump is the bad guy.  Tug, give an excuse for Biden's malfeasance.  I need a laugh.

[Tug]

5 minutes ago, thaipo7 said:

Sure glad Biden did not cause any malfeasance by letting in up to 20 million illegals.  The US may be 100 years working all this BS out that Biden caused.  But what the hell, Trump is the bad guy.  Tug, give an excuse for Biden's malfeasance.  I need a laugh.

Ahh thaipo this thread is about another enemy plant trump is trying to put in the cabinet but that won’t get through to you.

[Paul Henry]

Anything to keep in Putins good books in case he makes public what he is holding over Trump.

Yes Vlad any thing else I can do ?

[still kicking]

29 minutes ago, thaipo7 said:

Sure glad Biden did not cause any malfeasance by letting in up to 20 million illegals.  The US may be 100 years working all this BS out that Biden caused.  But what the hell, Trump is the bad guy.  Tug, give an excuse for Biden's malfeasance.  I need a laugh.

Typical MAGA reflection, the topic was not about Biden

[Hakuna Matata]

Isn't it a witch hunt by US democrats to undermine Trump's government?

[Hakuna Matata]

5 hours ago, Social Media said:

Yulia Kirillova, a Russian national educated in Moscow and later in Canada and Washington, D.C.

 

Looks beautiful to me, but not exactly Russian. More like a Tatar.

[rickudon]

Another wonderful appointee. Just like the new acting head of FEMA, who apparently didn't know that that the USA has a Hurricane season!

[Tug]

13 hours ago, Hakuna Matata said:

 

Looks beautiful to me, but not exactly Russian. More like a Tatar.

I dono looks like an inbred Russian hillbillie with a good figure to me ill regardless these folks have no business being in a sensitive post in the USA 

[dinsdale]

15 hours ago, JaxxBKK said:

Classic hit piece 🤣

A hit piece for a particular sector. Still I guess it's good for a dopamine hit for those who will be and have already been triggered to spew forth their pitiful vitriol.

[bendejo]

21 hours ago, Social Media said:

“The rise of non-woke (China) and anti-woke (Russia) geopolitical competitors to the Globalist American Empire is not a bad thing,” Beattie wrote in October 2021. In other posts, he praised Putin as “brave and strong” and declared that “Nato is a much greater threat to American liberty than Putin ever was.”

That just about spells it all out.  US security has been compromised, get used to it, something the MAGA fans can be proud of.

Among the first Musk targets was US AID.  Very likely that was at the bidding of Vlad.  DT probably never even heard of it before then.