The US government accuses Russia of interfering in the current presidential election campaign and is taking action against it with a package of sanctions. The US imposed sanctions on several individuals and organizations, including representatives of the Russian state broadcaster RT. The US State Department announced that it would restrict visas for employees of Kremlin-supported media organizations that were linked to covert attempts to exert influence. The US government also offered a reward for information on a Russian hacker group that it also accuses of election interference.
Serious accusations against Moscow – right to the top
According to the US government, attempts to influence Moscow are being initiated from the very top. US Attorney General Merrick Garland said that the inner circle around Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin had instructed Russian PR firms to “promote disinformation and state-sponsored narratives as part of a campaign to influence the 2024 US presidential election”.
The Treasury Department complained that actors backed by the Russian state have long used a variety of tools, such as artificial intelligence, so-called deep fakes, and targeted disinformation, to undermine trust in the processes and institutions surrounding US elections. In early 2024, RT executives also began covertly recruiting unwitting American social media influencers for influence attempts. RT used a front company to conceal its own involvement or that of the Russian government.
The aim of exerting influence in various ways was also to spread Russian government propaganda in the USA and to undermine support for Ukraine, which was attacked by Russia.
National Security Council communications director John Kirby said: “RT is no longer just a propaganda arm of the Kremlin.” The channel is being used to promote covert Russian influence. The aim is to sow discord, spread disinformation and circulate narratives in favor of Russia and to the detriment of Ukraine.
Among those affected by the sanctions are RT editor-in-chief Margarita Simonyan and other people from the channel’s management team. As a result of the sanctions, any assets of those affected in the USA will be frozen. US citizens will be prohibited from doing business with them. The sanctions also make international business much more difficult for those affected.
A recurring problem
According to official American sources, Moscow had already interfered in previous US elections. According to US intelligence services, Russia supported Republican Donald Trump in the 2020 election and tried to harm Democrat Joe Biden. US security authorities are convinced that Russia also intervened in the 2016 election in favor of candidate Trump in order to slow down Democrat Hillary Clinton. A special investigator later investigated possible illegal agreements between Russia and Trump’s team. There was insufficient evidence for this.
Referring to the recurring problem, Kirby said the US government’s countermeasures are about making such attempts at influence more difficult. “Will it make it completely impossible? Probably not, because they will find ways around it.”
Not the only problem
Kirby stressed that Russia is not the only one trying to destabilize American democracy. Garland also warned that “increasingly aggressive Iranian activities” are being observed in the current election campaign.
US intelligence agencies recently blamed Iran for hacking into internal communications of Trump’s campaign team. The Iranians had tried to gain access to people with direct connections to the Republican and Democratic campaign teams. “These activities, including thefts and revelations, are aimed at influencing the electoral process in the US,” said a report by the security authorities. Iran is trying to “stir up discord and undermine trust in our democratic institutions.” The campaign team of US Vice President Kamala Harris also recently announced that it had been the target of a foreign cyber attack.
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