Russia has dismissed Australia’s latest sanctions on a Kremlin-linked fund accused of spreading propaganda to justify the invasion of Ukraine, calling the move “Russophobia.”
Australia last week added Pravfond — formally the Foundation to Support and Defend the Rights of Compatriots Living Abroad — to its sanctions list, citing activities deemed of “economic or strategic significance to Russia,” according to newly published government regulations under its Russia/Ukraine regime.
“Pravfond has been identified as supporting individuals and entities attempting to influence public opinion abroad, including in relation to Russia’s illegal and immoral invasion of Ukraine,” a spokesperson for Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said on Monday.
The sanctions come after a joint investigation by ABC Investigations and the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), which revealed that Pravfond had funded legal expenses for Simeon Boikov, a pro-Kremlin activist known as the “Aussie Cossack.” Boikov gained notoriety during the COVID-19 pandemic for promoting anti-vaccine conspiracies and later became a vocal advocate for the Kremlin following Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
After injuring a Ukrainian supporter in a December 2022 altercation, Boikov took refuge inside the Russian consulate in Sydney to avoid arrest. He and his wife subsequently submitted multiple applications to Pravfond for legal support. Internal documents reviewed by reporters showed Sydney City Crime, a local law firm, received tens of thousands of dollars from Pravfond on Boikov’s behalf — including $23,700 in late 2022 and another $19,500 in early 2023.
Pravfond has previously supported high-profile figures such as convicted arms trafficker Viktor Bout and alleged Russian state assassin Vadim Krasikov. European security services have described the organization’s leadership as closely tied to Russian intelligence agencies.
In internal records, Pravfond described Boikov as a persecuted Russian patriot and lobbied for him to receive Russian citizenship — which he was granted in September 2023 by presidential decree.
Boikov confirmed he received his passport at the Russian consulate in Sydney, where he continues to broadcast to over 90,000 Telegram subscribers and is registered as working for the state-run outlet Russia Today. Emails also show he requested studio space in the consulate for his broadcasts.
In response to inquiries from OCCRP, Pravfond said it “categorically reject the allegations and designations imposed by the Australian authorities.”
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“The Foundation’s mission is solely humanitarian — to protect the rights of Russian compatriots abroad in accordance with international law,” it said in a statement. Support for Boikov, it added, was provided “at the request of his family and exclusively on a humanitarian basis,” and the fund “has no organizational or financial ties to any state or intelligence agencies.”
Australian authorities have not publicly linked the sanctions to the Boikov case, but the timing aligns with revelations published in May.
“Australia has been clear that those enabling Russia’s illegal invasion will face consequences,” the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said.
Sanctioning Pravfond means that people and businesses in Australia are no longer allowed to give money or anything valuable to the group, either directly or indirectly. It also means Pravfond likely won’t be able to hire people in Australia, because signing a job contract could break the law by giving the group something that counts as a valuable asset.
Banks and financial companies in Australia must also carefully check any transactions linked to Pravfond. If anyone in Australia holds money or property for Pravfond, they must freeze it — meaning they can’t use it, move it, or give it back.
The Russian Embassy in Australia referred inquiries to Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova, who accused Western countries of targeting Pravfond because it helps Russians defend their rights abroad.
“For a third year in a row, the Foundation for Support and Protection of the Rights of Compatriots Living Abroad gets in the hair of hateful Russophobes,” Zakharova said. “This organisation, that really helps Russians protect their legal rights abroad, is currently the target of a deluge of slander and outright disinformation.”
She added that European governments were “obsessed with propping up a collapsing Nazi regime” and are “scrambling to find new ways to antagonise Russia.”
“This is regressive Russophobia in its most grotesque form,” Zakharova said.