US cracks down on Russian disinformation campaign

The United States accused Russia on September 4 of trying to influence the 2024 US presidential election through Kremlin-run media outlets and online platforms that are designed to trick Americans into unwittingly consuming Russian propaganda, a statement said. Department of Justice press release dated September 4.

The Kremlin has used media outlets such as RT, formerly Russia Today, and the online platforms it supports to target American voters with disinformation, the department said. RT, a major focus of the announcement, is seen as a key part of the Kremlin’s propaganda efforts.

The department announced the seizure of 32 Internet domains it said were used in “Russian government-led foreign influence campaigns,” which FBI Director Christopher Wray said were operating at the direction of the Russian government, creating websites “full of Russian government. propaganda” designed to deceive US users.

Russian companies under the control of the Russian presidential administration are using the domains to covertly spread Russian government propaganda, which, in addition to trying to influence the presidential election, also aims to reduce international support for Ukraine and support pro-Russian policies and interests, the Department of Defense said. Justice. said.

“As alleged in our files, President Vladimir Putin’s inner circle, including (First Deputy Chief of Staff) Sergei Kiriyenko, directed Russian public relations companies to promote disinformation and state-sponsored narratives as part of a campaign to influencing the 2024 US presidential election,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said in the press release. “An internal planning document created by the Kremlin states that one goal of the campaign is to ensure Russia’s preferred outcome in the election.”

Garland did not specify the Kremlin’s preferred outcome, but Putin said earlier this year, before President Joe Biden’s decision to drop out of the race, allowing Vice President Kamala Harris to become the Democratic nominee, that Biden was more “predictable” than the former president Donald Trump. Putin also said the Kremlin is ready to work with whoever wins the election.

The department also announced the unsealing of an indictment charging Russian citizens Kostiantyn Kalashnikov, 31, and Elena Afanasyeva, 27, with conspiracy for violating the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) and conspiracy to commit money laundering.

Garland said the two RT employees were charged in a $10 million scheme “to create and distribute content to the American public with hidden Russian government messages.”

The United States “will not tolerate attempts by an authoritarian regime to exploit the free exchange of ideas in our country to covertly advance its own propaganda efforts,” Garland said, adding that the investigation into the matter remains ongoing. Kalashnikov and Afanasyeva are at large.

Russia described the move as a “witch hunt” designed to scare the US population and said it would target the US media in response to Washington’s actions against RT.

“There will be a response to the actions of the United States authorities, which directly contradict their obligations in the field of ensuring free access to information and media pluralism,” Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on September 5.

The US Department of Justice’s announcement came a month after Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said in a speech that Russia was the main threat to US elections.

Deputy Attorney General Matthew Olsen of the Justice Department’s National Security Division said in a statement that the domain seizure “clearly illustrates what the US government and private sector partners have been warning for months: The Russian government and its proxies are aggressively accelerating covert efforts to Kremlin. to seed false stories and amplify misinformation directed at the American public.”

The Russian government has long sought to “sow discord and chaos in the United States through propaganda and foreign malign influence campaigns,” Olsen said, adding that the new allegations reveal Russia is “willing to subvert our free and open press in their schemes its blatant. .”

Tactics include using RT to promote anti-US messages and content, and promoting networks of fake websites and social media accounts that amplify the claims. Typically, these networks capitalize on polarizing political topics such as immigration and crime. Americans viewing the content may have no idea that it either originated or was amplified by the Kremlin.

In relation to domain seizures, the US Treasury Department announced the appointment of 10 individuals and two entities for sanctions as part of the government’s response to Russia’s malign influence efforts targeting the US presidential election. Among the 10 people are Margarita Simonyan, editor-in-chief of RT, and Yelizaveta Brodskaya, deputy editor-in-chief of RT.

The sanctions announced by the Treasury Department complement the enforcement actions announced by the Department of Justice and the State Department’s designation of media group Rossia Segodnya and five of its affiliates — RIA Novosti, RT, TV-Novosti, Ruptly and Sputnik — as foreign missions.

As entities designated under the Foreign Mission Act, they will be required to notify the department of all personnel working in the United States and will be required to disclose all real estate they own in the United States to the Department of State said in a press release.

The State Department also announced measures to impose visa restrictions on individuals who act on behalf of Kremlin-backed media organizations, use those organizations as cover for covert activities, and are complicit in the employment of covert influence. Noting that visa applications are confidential, the State Department said it would not release the names of those affected.

Furthermore, the State Department announced a reward of up to $10 million for an organization known as RaHDit (Russian Angry Hackers Did It). The group has engaged in election influence in other countries and poses a threat to the 2024 US election, particularly through cyber influence operations, the State Department said.

“RaHDit members disseminate and amplify propaganda and disinformation from the Kremlin-funded and directed organization, RT, and RaHDit is associated with Russian intelligence services. RaHDit is headed by Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) officer Aleksei Garashchenko,” the department said.

Via RFE/RL

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