The State Department Should Designate the Russian Imperial Movement as a Foreign Terrorist Organization
On April 6, the federal government designated the Russian Imperial Movement (RIM) and three of its leaders as Specially Designated Global Terrorists (SDGTs). Although this was a step forward in combating violent white supremacy, it’s less than you might think, and less than today’s threat demands. Mary McCord and Jon Lewis wrote a piece on Lawfare explaining why. Here’s an excerpt:
Although important, an SDGT designation is part of a complicated economic sanctions regime that is effective at incentivizing corporate compliance but is not as effective a counterterrorism investigative tool as the criminal prohibitions on providing material support or resources to a designated FTO. Thus, alone, the SDGT designation is unlikely to have a significant impact on the activity of individuals or groups drawn to RIM’s extremist and violent ideology.
Read the full article here.
