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Declaring Soros a terrorist would mean shaking US foundations, Russian senator warns

Soros is the founder and head of the Soros Fund Management hedge fund and one of the wealthiest people in the world

George Soros EPA/CLEMENS BILAN

George Soros

© EPA/CLEMENS BILAN

MOSCOW, September 1. /TASS/. Labelling George Soros a terrorist, as required by the petition posted on the White House website, would mean shaking the US foundations to its core, and President Trump will not resort to such a move, First Deputy Chairman of Russia’s Federation Council (upper house) Defense and Security Committee Franz Klintsevich told reporters on Friday.

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He noted that the petition calling on Donald Trump to declare billionaire George Soros a terrorist and seize all his assets is an "interesting turnaround," but this scenario is hardly feasible.

A petition calling for declaring Soros a terrorist was earlier posted on the White House website. As of Thursday, it was signed by 62,000 people. The petition should gather 100,000 signatures, that is about 38,000 more votes to evoke response from the White House.

"It is an interesting turnaround. Americans want to declare the man who threw his money about around the world to fuel color revolutions a domestic terrorist. It is not unlikely that the 100,000 signatures necessary for the petition to be considered by the White House will be collected by September 19, but things are unlikely to go any further. Officially declaring George Soros a terrorist and seizing all his property and assets would actually mean undermining the foundations of the United States itself," Klintsevich stressed.

Accusations against Soros

The petition’s authors accuse Soros of attempting "willfully and on an ongoing basis to destabilize [the situation] and otherwise commit acts of sedition against the United States and its citizens." They call on the US federal government and the US Department of Justice to "immediately declare George Soros and all of his organizations and staff members to be domestic terrorists, and have all of his personal and organizational wealth and assets seized under the Civil Asset Forfeiture law."

According to Klintsevich, President Trump, "despite his dislike for the billionaire, will not resort to such a move, although that would be the best confirmation of the US president’s remarks that his country will no longer export democracy." "Anyway, the petition to declare Soros a terrorist is a signal, and not to him alone," the senator’s press service quotes him as saying.

Soros is the founder and head of the Soros Fund Management hedge fund and one of the world’s wealthiest people. According to Forbes, his fortune is estimated at about $25 bln. CNN reported last February that he donated $6 mln to the presidential campaign of former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Back in 2006, the billionaire actively supported the presidential ambitions of then Senator Barack Obama.

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