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Why has the NRA been cozving up to Russia? Page 11 of 13 hoping for new financial donors as the result of a loosening of the country's gun laws.. Butina told'ThinkProgress in an enail that there are no tinancial conrcctions between the Ameriean and Russian groups. "The Right to Bear Arms ankd your American NRA are completely separate organizations. We have no politieal or financial ties of any kind," she wrote,adding that they are "literally conrades in arns' in a shared helief that a right to own a firearm makes people safer. "I'm sorry to disappoint you" she srote, "but there is no internationn! conspiracy at work surrounding the organization I founded, The Right to Bear Arms." She added that her group's paynents for Sheriff Clarke's visit and others in the NRA delogation were "something any decent host would do when friends yisit," but did not respond to questions about whether other American politicians had Rso been brought to Moscow at the group's expense. The National Rifle Association and Torshin did not respond to ThinkProgress inquiries about their relationship. Now with Trunp and Putin agreeing to normalize relations in the coming year, expect the aiready elose relations between Trunp's friernls at the NRA and Putin's friends at The Right to Bear Arns to be choser still.Perhaps it will become eyident just what these two groups are really up to 1B(82107)-32 https://thinkprogress.org/nra-and-russian-cousin-181607d40240