begin quote from:
US must act now to ward off more Russian election meddling, report ...
www.cnn.com/2018/01/10/politics/us-russia-election-meddling...report/index.html
3 days ago - The US will not be prepared to defend against possible Russian meddling in the 2018 midterm elections or the 2020 presidential contest unless it takes ... US must act now to ward off more Russian election meddling, report says .... Russia investigation a challenge for US-Moscow relations, Tillerson says.
Top stories
US must act now to ward off more Russian election meddling, report says
KTVQ Billings News · 2 days ago
US must act now to ward off more Russian election meddling, report ...
https://www.reddit.com/r/.../us_must_act_now_to_ward_off_more_russian_election/
3 days ago - I
am just saying that we need to be aware of our history because much of
what is happening in the world today has clear precedents that we should have been aware of. O course other countries want to influence US elections. Of course their tactics will vary. Of course new technology will be used to ...
U.S. must act now to ward off Russian election meddling in 2018
https://www.usatoday.com/...must-act-now-ward-off...election-med...
3 days ago
A new report reveals Russian President Vladimir Putin has spent the past 20 years meddling in democracies ...US must act now to ward off more Russian election meddling, report says
Pelosi: US deserves fair Russia investigation 01:18
Story highlights
- The report was released by the senior Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee
- It concludes the US has no "coherent, comprehensive and coordinated approach" to the threat
(CNN)The
US will not be prepared to defend against possible Russian meddling in
the 2018 midterm elections or the 2020 presidential contest unless it
takes action now, according to a new report detailing the extent to which Moscow has tried to shape elections across Europe.
The
report details Russia's arsenal of military invasions, disinformation
campaigns and corruption, and its weaponization of energy resources,
among other tools, and it demonstrates how Moscow's attacks have
intensified in scale and complexity, hitting Britain, Germany and
France, as well as Ukraine and smaller countries.
The report, released Wednesday by
Sen. Ben Cardin of Maryland, the senior Democrat on the Foreign
Relations Committee, draws from European experience to outline ways in
which Russia's "malign influence operations" can be deterred.
Titled
"Putin's Asymmetrical Assault on Democracy in Russia and Europe:
Implications for U.S. National Security," it was researched and written
by Cardin staff members who interviewed European ambassadors in the US
and traveled to Europe to talk to government officials, NGOs and media
groups about Russian interference in their countries.
The
report warns that unless the US acts to counter the threat soon, Moscow
will grow only more aggressive. And it adds a crucial caveat, given
President Donald Trump's repeated refusal to acknowledge US intelligence
assessments that Russia interfered in the 2016 election.
'Trump has been negligent,' report says
"Without
leadership from the President, any attempt to marshal such a response
will be inherently weakened at the outset," it says. "President Trump
has been negligent in acknowledging and responding to the threat to US
national security posed by [Russian President Vladimir] Putin's
meddling."
Cardin, speaking at the
German Marshall Fund on Wednesday, said that, "we don't have a President
yet to fully acknowledge what Russia did to the United States in the
elections. When you have that ambiguity, you don't have the consistency,
you don't have all the strategy to protect the country [coming] from
the President."
"That," Cardin said, "compromises our national security."
The
administration pushed back hard. "We are happy that Congress agrees
with our Intelligence Community's assessment regarding the Russian
threat," the National Security Council said in a statement. "This
Administration has no higher priority than protecting the national
security and public safety of the United States. Some of our efforts
will be seen and some will not, but there will most certainly be
consequences for those who seek to interfere with our elections. We look
forward to Congress's participation while continuing the
Administration's steadfast efforts to counter Russian malign activities
and protect future elections."
The
administration points to its sanctions on Russia, decision to send arms
to Ukraine, closure of Russian diplomatic properties, pursuit of Russian
and Russia-linked cyber criminals, and work to secure election
infrastructure, among other steps.
Even so, Cardin's report
says that the US has no "coherent, comprehensive and coordinated
approach to the Kremlin's malign influence operations, either abroad or
at home."
The report calls for Trump to establish a high-level inter-agency group to
coordinate US policy in response to the Russian government's
operations. It also calls on the President to present Congress with a
comprehensive strategy that deals with all aspects of Russia's
disruptive tactics.
Fusion co-founder: Dossier author feared Trump was being blackmailed 03:05
It
calls on social media companies such as Facebook and Twitter to be held
more accountable for acting as a "key conduit of disinformation
campaigns that undermine democracies." It urges a new sanctions
designation for "state hybrid threat actors" — countries that use
traditional and nontraditional means, like cyberwarfare, to destabilize
other nations.
The report demands
a more personal targeting of Putin's "personal corruption and wealth
stored abroad," recommending that the US "take steps with our European
allies to cut off Mr. Putin and his inner circle from the international
financial system."
It also stresses the need to help European allies reduce their dependence on Russian energy supplies.
Cardin
is releasing the report as FBI and congressional probes into the Trump
campaign's ties to Russia continue and relations between Washington and
Moscow have entered a deep chill, despite Trump's oft-stated desire for a
closer relationship with Russia and Putin.
Cardin
said the so-called "minority report" wasn't written with Republicans
because they had other priorities when his staff started researching
last January and February but that it had a lot of Republican input.
"Our report is not partisan — at all," he said.
"We
kept them engaged and informed as we went through the process," Cardin
said. "So this is not an effort to exclude one party. In fact, much of
what is in this report was with the assistance of Republican members."
A
spokeswoman for Sen. Bob Corker, chairman of the Foreign Relations
Committee, said Cardin had kept the Tennessee Republican informed about
the report. Under Corker, the committee has conducted oversight and
helped expand sanctions against Russia for its "continued aggression,
including its brazen cyber-attacks and interference in elections," Micah
Johnson said. No further committee activity is planned at this time,
she added.
The Russian Embassy did not respond to requests for comment.
Democratic
aides said the report is not meant as a dive into Russia's meddling
into the 2016 US election, given the multiple investigations on the
issue. As the first government report to outline the scale and scope of
Putin's efforts, it's meant to lay down a marker and warn that 2016
wasn't unique, they said.
Trouble ahead
It
comes a few weeks before a deadline for the administration to announce
secondary sanctions against companies and individuals who do business
with Russian intelligence and military entities. The State Department
missed its first deadline on those sanctions, and lawmakers are watching
closely to see whether the administration complies promptly.
At
more than 200 pages with over 1,000 footnotes, the report takes an
unsparing look at Putin's approach to rivals and perceived threats going
back decades and ends in December 2017. It predicts potential trouble
ahead.
"If the United States fails
to work with urgency to address this complex and growing threat, the
regime in Moscow will become further emboldened," the report says. "It
will continue to develop and refine its arsenal to use on democracies
around the world, including against US elections in 2018 and 2020."
While
the US has what the report calls "a patchwork" of offices and programs
working on efforts that could help counter Russia's election
interference, it doesn't have the coordinated approach that the report
calls for: a "fusion" center that brings different elements of
government together to address the threat, much like the National Counterterrorism Center.
Mueller interview offers risks, rewards for Trump 05:30
The report points to Europe to provide a road map for the US going forward. "We can learn from Europe," a Democratic aide said.
The
UK has made a point of publicly chastising the Russian government for
its meddling in democracies, and it has moved to strengthen
cybersecurity and electoral processes, the report notes.
Germany
"pre-empted Kremlin interference in its national election with a strong
warning of consequences, an agreement among political parties not to
use bots or paid trolls, and close cyber cooperation between the
government and political campaigns."
Spain
has cracked down on Russia-based organized crime groups, while France
has created a coordinated effort among government, political and media
groups to dilute the impact of Russian hacking and smear campaigns.
Smaller
countries such as the Nordic states have emphasized critical thinking
and media literacy among their populations. Baltic nations have informed
their publics of Russia's activities, toughened their defenses against
cyberattacks and moved to reduce their energy dependence on Moscow.
This story has been updated.
No comments:
Post a Comment