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Russia spent £260m on secret operations to influence politicians around the world, US intelligence says | World News


A ‘sensitive’ diplomatic cable released by the US has revealed more than £260m has been secretly spent by Russia to try to influence politicians and other officials in more than two dozen countries .

The US State Department took the unusual step of releasing a telegram signed by Secretary of State Antony Blinken, which was sent Monday to US embassies and consulates abroad, many of them in Europe, Africa and South Asia, raising concerns.

The material is not intended for a foreign audience but is not classified, and contains a series of points that US diplomats are instructed to raise with their host governments regarding alleged US interference. Russia.

It did not name specific Russian targets, but said the US was currently providing top-secret information to a number of individual countries.

According to the content, intelligence officials believe that Russia plans to channel funding “at least hundreds of millions more” to sympathetic parties and officials around the world.

Putin’s Intervention

The cable did not say how intelligence officials came up with the overall number or addressed concerns that Russia or other adversaries might try to meddle in US politics again.

The steps proposed by the diplomats include sanctions, travel bans and exposure to clandestine financial resources.

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy and his deputies have long accused the Russian President Vladimir Putin interfere in domestic politics.

And a senior US administration official told the AP news agency that there were allegations of Russian influence in recent elections in Albania, Bosnia and Montenegro – all Eastern European countries have faced. with historical pressure from Moscow.

President Joe Biden speaks outside Independence Hall, Thursday, September 1, 2022, in Philadelphia.  (AP Photo / Evan Vucci)
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Pic: Associated Press

Just last week, the President of the United States Joe Biden extended a national emergency declaration addressing the continued threat of foreign election interference.

First announced in September 2018, he said it would be extended for another year, including the House and Senate elections taking place in November.

“We are promoting synergies with our democratic colleagues,” the official said. “And we will exchange lessons learned, all to enhance our collective election security, as well as our election security at home.”

Read more:
Leaked report details Russian ‘cyber espionage’ during 2016 US election campaign

Unlike the declared efforts of foreign governments to lobby for priority initiatives, Russia’s covert influence involves the use of front organizations to transfer funds to causes. Preferred individual or politician, cable alleges.

That includes consulting organizations in Europe and state-owned enterprises in Central America, Asia, the Middle East and North Africa.

State Department spokesman Ned Price called Russia’s covert funding an “attack on sovereignty”.

“It is an attempt to eliminate the ability of people around the world to choose the governments they see best fit to represent them, represent their interests, and represent them,” he said. for their values.



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