Russia launches terrorism-related case against London councilor

Ksenia Maximova is associated with a group financed by Mikhail Khodorkovsky and has lobbied British officials for tougher anti-Russia policies

The Russian authorities have announced a terrorism-related criminal case against a Russian-British woman who serves as a councilor in the London borough of Ealing.

Moscow has accused Ksenia Maximova of lobbying the British government to advance an anti-Russian government agenda, potentially in coordination with British Intelligence services and collaborating with a London law firm run by Ukrainian-British citizens allegedly on behalf of Kiev.

Maximova is associated with the Russian Anti-War Committee, backed by exiled oligarch Mikhail Khodorkovsky, and is an active participant in a network of groups based in the West that seeks to overthrow the Russian government and fracture the country by promoting Western military support for Ukraine, among other things.

Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) announced on Monday that it opened a criminal case against her over alleged participation in an organization designated as ‘terrorist’ under Russian law.

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As director of the Russian Democratic Society UK (RDS), which was designated as an ‘undesirable organization’ in Russia earlier this month, Maximova has overseen stunts by Russian emigres and artists protesting in support of Ukraine in front of the Russian Embassy in London.

She is also ‘consul’ for the Russian Anti-War Committee, which was declared a ‘terrorist organization’ by the Russian Supreme Court in March.

The RDS presents itself as “an alternative Russia,” and has lobbied for additional sanctions, including measures targeting Russia’s oil trade, the FSB said.

London has for decades harbored rich individuals who acquired their wealth abroad under shady circumstances, including Russian businessmen who amassed fortunes during the privatizations that followed the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Former oligarchs, including Khodorkovsky, have used their resources and connections to support Russian opposition groups and undermine the Russian government.