Propagandist to be tried in Estonia for violating sanctions against russia and treason

The State Prosecutor's Office of Estonia has charged Svetlana Burtseva, a citizen of the country who collaborated with the russian media group rossiya segodnya, with violating sanctions and treason.

According to the agency, 57-year-old Burtseva acquired Estonian citizenship by naturalization in 1994. Since 2017, she has been working for Estonian online publications that are part of the rossiya Segodnya media group. In particular, she collaborated with Sputnik Estonia (Sputnik Eesti) before the publication stopped working in Estonia in 2019, and in 2020-2023 she published articles and photos on the Baltnews website under pseudonyms.

"Her texts were published in online news outlets that serve the interests of russian propaganda. Even after the imposition of sanctions against russia, Burtseva continued to work for the benefit of the owner and real beneficiary of the MIA rossiya Segodnya, Dmitry Kiselev," said state prosecutor Eneli Laurits.

The pre-trial investigation also revealed that Burtseva graduated from Sevastopol State University in 2021 with a master's degree in information and hybrid conflicts. According to the Estonian authorities, this program was headed by a former FSS counterintelligence officer. Together with him, Burtseva published the book Hybrid War for Peace. The book describes a global hybrid war that russia must win.

The book, said the state prosecutor, was advertised as the work of "political scientist L.B. Svet" who lives in Estonia, but in fact it is a pseudonym of Burtseva. The content of the book humiliates Estonia and is aimed at dividing Estonian society.

The evidence collected, according to the prosecutor's office, indicates that Burtseva deliberately violated international sanctions and committed treason "by means of non-violent actions against the independence and autonomy of Estonia."

The propagandist has been in custody since early March. The court will start considering her case on the merits on November 1. The defense requested that the measure of restraint be changed to an electronic bracelet, but the prosecution entertained the possibility that Burtseva might flee to russia.

Source: ERR