The Russian Direct Investment Fund, which has more than $10B in assets, has invested $90K in a two-month effort by Capitol Counsel LLC to educate US Treasury staffers and policymakers about its operation.

The Financial Times reported Sept. 21 that RDIV is battling to preserve its goals as relations between Moscow and West plummet.

Russia's sovereign fund has avoided US economic sanctions, though its parent, state-owned VEB, and supervisory board member Sergei Ivanov, who was Vladimir Putin's chief of staff, are on the list.

Capitol Counsel, which is headed by Democratic lobbyist John Raffaelli, is to assist RDIF correct "significantly misstated" press reports, according to the representation agreement.

The letter says RDIF is "committed to international best practices, transparency, corporate governance."

The fund "acts as a co-investor or partners, always as a minority stakeholder, with leading international businesses and sovereign wealth funds."

FT reported that BlackRock, One Equity Partners, Deutsche Bank and Goldman Sachs and are among RDIF partners.

RDIF CEO Kirill Dmitriev, who is a former Goldman banker, told the paper: “There are forces in Russia that are good for the world economy. We are one of them.”

Raffaelli, who is founding partner of Capitol Counsel, was international trade and tax advisor to former Texas Senator Lloyd Bentsen.

He also was founder/chairman of The Washington Group and its predecessor firm, Raffaelli, Spees, Springer and Smith.