The alleged Russian agent’s promotional outreach, which occurred while she also served as chairperson of the Russian Community Council of the USA, included an “I Love Russia” campaign aimed at American youths
"Particularly given current global events, the need to detect and hinder attempts at foreign influence is of critical importance, and the Southern District of New York is proud to do its part in the fight against tyranny,” he said.
Branson, 61, was charged with conspiring to act as an agent of a foreign government without notifying the U.S. attorney general, among other charges. The complaint said she emailed a Trump adviser after the November 2016 presidential election to offer congratulations and try to get the president-elect to attend a World Chess Championship in Manhattan, although “there was no indication that the now-former President attended the referenced event.”
In 2019, authorities said, she coordinated through her New York center a campaign to lobby Hawaiian officials not to change the name of Fort Elizabeth on the Hawaiian island of Kauai, which is the last remaining former Russian fort in the Hawaiian islands. Authorities said Branson regularly received funding and direction from the Russian government, including from the country's embassy in Washington, and received tasking from high-level Russian government officials and government-run organizations.
In a Jan. 30, 2012 email, Branson wrote that she was sending a letter to Putin asking him to provide administrative support so she could host events at the Russian Consulate in New York and the Russian Embassy in Washington, the complaint said.