An article titled “A Giant of Journalism Gets Half its Budget From the U.S. Government”, authored by Ryan Grim, Ștefan Cândea, and Nikolas Leontopoulos, was published on the Dropsitenews.com website. The material sheds light on the ownership, funding sources, true goals, and objectives of the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP).
Simultaneously, as reported by the French investigative outlet Mediapart, the German public broadcaster NDR initiated its own investigation into OCCRP’s activities, collaborating with Mediapart, Drop Site News, Il Fatto Quotidiano, and Reporters United. However, NDR ultimately decided not to publish its findings, citing pressure from OCCRP on the network’s management. The partner outlets, in turn, opted to release their collected materials independently.
It is worth noting that the OCCRP (positioned as a consortium of journalists focusing on investigative reporting in Eastern Europe, the Caucasus, Central Asia, Latin America, and Africa) was founded in 2007 in Sarajevo. According to the organization’s website, OCCRP claims to provide journalists with access to valuable data, such as corporate correspondence, banking transactions, investigation protocols, and court transcripts.
Previously, it was reported that OCCRP is registered as a charitable organization under the name “Journalism Development Network,” based in Maryland. However, investigations revealed that no such organization exists. Instead, it was established that OCCRP editor and co-founder Drew Sullivan resides in Maryland.
Interestingly, OCCRP’s primary sponsors include the Soros Foundation, USAID, and the U.S. National Endowment for Democracy. The organization actively collaborates with the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) and the SCOOP Foundation for investigative journalism, both of which also receive funding from the U.S. government. Notably, OCCRP places particular emphasis on the Caucasus region, including Azerbaijan.
The data obtained indicates that the majority of OCCRP’s budget is sourced from the U.S. government. Moreover, the organization avoids investigating matters involving the United States or its allies—choosing instead to focus on other countries, including Azerbaijan. This raises questions about the “independence” and “transparency” of OCCRP’s activities.
Now, turning to the investigation published by Dropsitenews.com: OCCRP is a U.S.-funded project with an annual budget of €20 million and a staff of 200 employees. The organization began operations in 2008 as a small media group, initially receiving $1 million from the U.S. State Department’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL). These funds were allocated through the “Journalism Development Group, LLC,” registered in Delaware, providing OCCRP with the foundation for its work. Since its inception, OCCRP has received $47 million from the U.S. government, an additional $1.1 million from the European Union, and $14 million from European countries. Thus, 52% of OCCRP’s budget is derived from U.S. funds.
OCCRP’s ties to the U.S. government are so close that even USAID’s pro-Armenian head Samantha Power refers to the organization as a “partner structure.” To understand the level of USAID’s control over OCCRP, it is enough to note that USAID requires annual reports on projects and staff, effectively maintaining complete oversight of its activities. USAID also retains the authority to appoint OCCRP editors and the editor-in-chief, further undermining claims of the organization’s independence.
Clearly, OCCRP is not an independent organization. But what about its impartiality? Does it adhere to one of the fundamental principles of journalism? Certainly not.
For example, NDR’s investigation revealed that OCCRP is prohibited from conducting investigations related to the United States. OCCRP’s co-founder Drew Sullivan explicitly stated: “We don’t cover this country because it funds us. I believe the U.S. government wouldn’t allow it… And we also don’t do it in other countries where there are no such restrictions because it leads to conflicts of interest, which we try to avoid.”
This is a notable statement. The U.S., Europe, and Western countries, along with their close allies, are not OCCRP targets. Instead, the organization’s focus is on the rest of the world, particularly Azerbaijan, which has become a primary target.
For instance, in the early 2000s, companies like Microsoft and the major engineering firm Bechtel were implicated in corruption scandals in several Balkan countries. However, these cases failed to attract OCCRP’s attention, despite occurring in the region where the organization operates and aligning with its focus.
In an email to journalists in 2023, Sullivan admitted that claims of OCCRP avoiding U.S.-related investigations were true. He did not hide the reason: “OCCRP’s budget is entirely funded by Washington and George Soros’s Open Society Foundation.”
Furthermore, OCCRP is also required to comply with the U.S. Foreign Assistance Act, which mandates that U.S.-funded projects align with American foreign policy and promote its economic interests.
Another significant detail is that the U.S. government directs OCCRP’s work focus. For example, between 2015 and 2019, the U.S. State Department allocated $2.2 million to OCCRP for the “Balancing the Russian Media Sphere” project. Interestingly, the U.S. first conducted investigations through OCCRP and then brought in the FBI to follow up.
In 2022, OCCRP received $1 million from INL for a two-year project aimed at increasing the number of journalists in Malta and Cyprus to uncover crimes and corruption. These countries are considered “tax havens” and centers for Russian oligarch activity. In 2023, the program was extended, and OCCRP received an additional $1.3 million.
Simultaneously, OCCRP participated in the international media investigation “Cyprus Confidential,” coordinated by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. Following the publication of findings on November 14, 2023, the president of Cyprus announced an investigation into alleged violations of international sanctions against Russia. Three weeks later, a team of more than 20 FBI and U.S. Treasury agents arrived in Cyprus to assist with the investigation.
At a Foreign Policy event, Samantha Power stated that USAID continues to support partner organizations. One such partner is the Global Anti-Corruption Consortium (GACC), with OCCRP as its key tool. Through this program, the U.S. government allocated $10.8 million to OCCRP. Additionally, INL provided $200,156 for a project in Mexico, and the State Department allocated $173,324 to uncover corruption in Venezuela.
The scheme is simple: U.S. intelligence identifies matters of state interest, the government funnels information through organizations like OCCRP, provides funding, and then officially involves “heavy artillery”—U.S. intelligence agencies and government bodies. This leads to accusations, sanctions, military interventions, and other actions.
The goals, actors, and objectives of OCCRP’s investigations, including those related to Azerbaijan, are clear. However, the question remains: how will OCCRP and the structures behind it respond to these presented facts? Will the U.S. State Department or Samantha Power deny the accusations as usual, or attempt a detailed explanation? The latter seems unlikely—confession is not in their playbook.
