PerspectiveDesignating the Russian Imperial Movement a Terrorist Organization: A Drop in the Bucket of Needed U.S. Counter-Extremism Responses

Published 12 June 2020

On 6 April 2020, the U.S. State Department designated the Russian Imperial Movement (RIM) as a terrorist organization and placed its leaders on its list of Specially Designated Global Terrorists. Mariya Omelicheva writes that this unprecedented move—the first time in history the State Department has deployed tools reserved for jihadist groups against a white supremacist organization—comes at a time of rising right-wing extremism and violence in the United States and around the globe as well as the internationalization of white supremacist movements.

On 6 April 2020, the U.S. State Department designated the Russian Imperial Movement (RIM) as a terrorist organization and placed its leaders on its list of Specially Designated Global Terrorists. Mariya Omelicheva writes for PONARS Eurasia that this unprecedented move—the first time in history the State Department has deployed tools reserved for jihadist groups against a white supremacist organization—comes at a time of rising right-wing extremism and violence in the United States and around the globe as well as the internationalization of white supremacist movements.

She adds:

While the RIM’s ongoing paramilitary training and support for violent action outside of Russia is a case for real concern, the impact of labeling it as a terrorist entity will be limited at best. The RIM’s American connections are thin, its membership is small, and its global reach is paltry compared to the shared influences of white supremacists in North America and Europe.

….

Overstating the RIM’s connection to the Kremlin and Russia’s ability to incite violence via the U.S. far right obscures the homegrown nature of the U.S. white supremacist movement, which has been emboldened by the normalization of hate speech and the spread of racist and xenophobic views in mainstream politics. As the rapidly growing and diversifying far right continues connecting across borders, it is imperative to better understand common ties, influencers and networking platforms in order to develop comprehensive measures to counter the proliferation of violence and hate.”

….

The internationalization and weaponization of far-right movements are significant and dangerous phenomena that must be addressed, and the threat of far-right violence must be actively countered. However, for terrorist designations of white supremacist groups to be effective, they must be part of a comprehensive package of measures designed to confront the rise of far-right extremism.

To begin with, the U.S. government must pursue systematic data collection and research into white supremacy and its international connections. While there are multiple non-governmental groups monitoring far-right extremist violence, there are few government-published statistics for keeping track of the scale and direction of the threat, as well as the ideologues, ideologies, and sponsors that drive it. The National Counterterrorism Center and the State Department’s Global Engagement Center could be empowered to conduct analyses regarding the nature and direction of supremacist threats.