Washington: The United States today designated Anton Thulin, a Swedish citizen, who travelled to St. Petersburg and received paramilitary training from the Russian Imperial Movement (RIM), as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) “for posing a significant risk of committing acts of terrorism”.
Additionally, the Department of the Treasury is designating, under E.O. 13244, Stanislav Shevchuk for acting or purporting to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, the Russian Imperial Movement (RIM); and Alexander Zhuchovsky for materially assisting, sponsoring, or providing financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, RIM.
RIM, which was designated by the Department of State as an SDGT in 2020, is an ultranationalist, white supremacist group based in Russia that provides paramilitary-style training to white supremacists and neo-Nazis and plays a prominent role in attempting to rally Europeans and Americans into a common front against perceived enemies.
In 2016, Thulin received paramilitary training from RIM, including in bomb-making, in St. Petersburg. In 2017, a Swedish court convicted Thulin and sentenced him to 22 months in prison in connection with the detection of a powerful homemade bomb near a refugee residential centre in Gothenburg, Sweden. After serving his sentence, Thulin sought to receive additional paramilitary training in Poland, before he was expelled by Polish authorities who cited the “serious, real, and current threat to security and public order” he posed.
The United States State Department spokesperson Ned Price said today that the US was designating Thulin because his continued pursuit of terrorist training, even after serving his prison sentence for his role in the 2017 attack in Sweden, demonstrates that he continues to pose a significant risk of committing acts of terrorism.
“The U.S. government remains deeply concerned about the evolving racially or ethnically motivated violent extremist (REMVE) threat worldwide. An element of it entails violent white supremacists travelling internationally to train and fight with like-minded individuals. As part of our efforts to counter this threat, the Department of State is designating Anton Thulin as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT),” Price said.
As a result of these actions, U.S. persons are generally prohibited from engaging in any transactions with those designated today. Their property and interests in property subject to U.S. jurisdiction are blocked. Terrorist designations expose and isolate entities and individuals and prevent them from exploiting the U.S. financial system. Moreover, designations can assist the law enforcement activities of U.S. agencies and other relevant enforcement entities and governments.
– global bihari bureau
