Cheers from the Kremlin: Russian Officials Celebrate Trumps Cuts to U.S. Media Funding

Moscow is reportedly pleased with President Donald Trump’s decision to significantly reduce funding for U.S.-backed media organizations Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) and Voice of America (VOA), according to several high-ranking Russian officials and diplomats who spoke to The Moscow Times under condition of anonymity due to the sensitive nature of the topic.

RFE/RL was established by the U.S. during the Cold War to challenge Soviet propaganda, but was banned in the communist bloc where its broadcasts were regularly jammed. As press freedom in contemporary Russia has become increasingly restricted under President Vladimir Putin, RFE/RL and VOA have once again been labeled as “enemy voices,” similar to how they were viewed by Soviet authorities.

The Kremlin has shown particular annoyance towards RFE/RL’s regional affiliates that broadcast in local and Indigenous languages throughout Russia and former Soviet nations, perceiving them as a threat to the wartime censorship that followed Russia’s large-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Two current and two former Russian officials conveyed to The Moscow Times that the reporting from these outlets posed significant challenges to Kremlin propaganda, undermining Moscow’s influence in the post-Soviet landscape.

Over the weekend, Trump’s administration began terminating staff at VOA and other broadcasters, including RFE/RL, following a freeze on their funding.

Officially, the Kremlin downplayed the impact of these changes on Russia. Spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated, “These media outlets cannot be considered particularly popular or demanded in Russia; they serve purely propagandistic purposes. This is an internal matter for the United States, and it does not concern us significantly.”

However, unofficially, sources within the Kremlin expressed satisfaction at the reduction of these outlets, as shared by one current official and a former high-ranking Kremlin member who recently resigned.

“A dog’s death for a dog,” was the phrase used by the ex-official, reflecting a sentiment previously echoed by ex-President Dmitry Medvedev in response to the assassination of a Russian military defector in Spain. He went on to call RFE/RL and VOA “an outdated, foolish tool,” while expressing cautious support for many of Trump’s actions beyond the dismantling of these media organizations.

The Russian Foreign Ministry has not released a statement regarding the actions taken by the Trump administration against RFE/RL and VOA.

A Russian diplomat did confess to The Moscow Times that the ministry views this decision positively within the context of Russian foreign policy, particularly regarding the former Soviet states that Moscow considers part of its sphere of influence. “Their operations definitely harmed us in post-Soviet countries, as they aimed to create divisions between us and our allies,” the diplomat noted.

Comments from Russian propagandists were less restrained. «Today is a holiday for me and my colleagues at RT and Sputnik. This is an outstanding decision by Trump!” exclaimed Margarita Simonyan, editor-in-chief of the Kremlin-affiliated RT network and Rossiya Segodnya news agency. «Unfortunately, we couldn’t shut them down ourselves, but America has done it for us.»

Simonyan also accused VOA and RFE/RL of inciting ethnic tensions in Dagestan, pointing to the fall 2023 incident at Makhachkala International Airport involving locals searching for Israeli passengers. “Everything was peaceful, so what sparked the sudden rush to storm the airport? It was them [RFE/RL and VOA] and foreign agents stirring up unrest,” she told an audience on a Sunday evening broadcast on state-run Rossia 1.

«They extend their influence across our regions like an octopus, brainwashing our citizens,» she added.

VOA began its Russian broadcasts in 1947, with RFE/RL following in 1953, while the Soviet Union had started its international broadcasts even earlier. Moscow Radio launched in 1929 and was later rebranded multiple times, eventually becoming Voice of Russia and then Sputnik.

In 2017, Washington designated Russian media outlets RT and Sputnik as “foreign agents.” Following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, these outlets were blocked by the EU and faced sanctions.

In retaliation, Moscow labeled VOA and RFE/RL as “foreign agents” too, subsequently banning them as undesirable organizations, making any cooperation, including interviews or content sharing, illegal.

Trump has framed the funding freeze on RFE/RL and VOA as an initiative to streamline what he describes as a «bloated» federal bureaucracy. However, critics warn that their closure would deprive non-democratic countries of access to reliable information and facilitate adversaries like Russia, China, and Iran in disseminating their narratives globally.

Analysts linked to the Kremlin believe that Trump’s dismantling of U.S.-funded international media signifies a potential shift in how Washington approaches U.S.-Russia relations, hinting at an exploration of new avenues for cooperation after years of tense interactions.

“At the very least, this indicates an effort to find common ground for dialogue between the major powers,” remarked analysts from the pro-Kremlin think tank EISI.

Nonetheless, Russian lawmakers and officials insist that the U.S. will not discontinue its efforts to sway Russia and its neighboring regions.

«A new network with similar goals may well take the place of the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM), which includes Voice of America, Radio Free Europe, and Current Time,» stated Vasily Piskarev, head of the State Duma’s Foreign Interference Commission and a former deputy head of the Investigative Committee known for its repressive measures.

Senator Vladimir Dzhabarov, a former KGB officer, expressed a similar sentiment, asserting, «I have no doubt that funds will be procured for Russophobes to continue their activities.»