U.S. lobbyists connect Ukraine officials with powerful allies to help in war against Russia

Firefighters extinguish fire at a damaged residential building that was hit by a Russian attack in Kyiv, Ukraine on March 15, 2022.

Lobbyists are working to connect Ukrainian officials with powerful allies in the U.S., including mayors, governors and representatives of at least one firearm dealer in an effort to help the war-torn country in its fight against Russia.

Pro bono work for Ukrainian government officials has been started by at least one U.S. firm and a separate lawyer.

Lobbyists have distanced themselves from Russian-backed entities because of Western sanctions. Sidley Austin dropped VTB Bank as a client after the Biden administration imposed sanctions on the financial institution.

Franklin told CNBC in an interview on Tuesday that Your Global Strategy is working to connect local Ukrainian government officials with American mayors and governors. He noted that he is the sole lobbyist for Your Global Strategy.

The Russian Federation gave a special citation to Steiner for his work as the CEO of the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee.

Lukas Jan Kaczmarek, a Maryland-based lawyer, disclosed in the DOJ filing that he is trying to help secure weapons and other materials for the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense through diplomatic channels. He didn't return calls for comment.

According to Franklin and Your Global's DOJ filing, it helped set up video calls between the Mayor of Kharkiv and the U.S. mayors, including Eric Adams in New York City.

Franklin said he is working with the Zelenskyy administration to set up virtual meetings between mayors of Odessa and Kyiv. Franklin didn't disclose the names of the officials who are expected to call the U.S. governors and local Ukrainian leaders.

According to the Boston Herald, Terekhov urged Wu to push for tighter sanctions on Russia. According to the paper, Terekhov explained that he made the same plea to Adams during their conversation, which was not open to the press. Major sanctions have been placed on Russia by the U.S. and their allies.

A request for comment was not returned.

Franklin, who is leading the new Ukrainian effort for the firm, and Steiner, promote on their website that the two met in Crimea almost 15 years ago, where they co-produced a community-building conference that drew leaders and managers from across the former.

Kaczmarek describes in his DOJ filing how he is trying to help the Ukrainian defense officials acquire weapons, with part of his focus being on engaging with a representative from the American gun manufacturer Kel-Tec.

Adrian Kellgren, director of industrial production at Kel-Tec, was approached by one of the volunteers inquiring as to whether I could assist him with an expedited export license for a bunch of small arms that could no longer be delivered.

I was able to resolve the export license issue for Mr. Kellgren as of March 8, 2022. I offered to assist Volodymyr Muzylov, first secretary at the Ukraine Embassy in the U.S., with the acquisition of material for the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, and he accepted.

A person could not be reached.