US warning: Russia could try to interfere with election again

The US Department of Homeland Security and FBI have warned that Russia could try to interfere in the November presidential elections.

US officials have been warned about associates of Russian President Vladimir Putin trying to interfere with November’s election. Picture: AP

The US Department of Homeland Security and the FBI have warned that Russia could try to influence November’s presidential elections by covertly advising political candidates and campaigns.

A February 3 memo to states says that though officials “have not previously observed Russia ­attempt this action against the United States”, political strategists working for a business mogul close to President Vladimir Putin have been involved in secret campaigning in many African countries.

The memo underscores how the White House is continuing to sound alarms about the prospect of future Russian interference in American politics even as President Donald Trump has sought to downplay the Kremlin’s involvement in his 2016 win over Democrat Hillary Clinton.

Because it was prepared before the coronavirus outbreak, the memo does not reflect how the pandemic might affect the tactics Russia might use to interfere with the election.

FBI and Homeland Security representatives did not comment on the memo on Tuesday (AEST).

The document, described as a “reference aid”, does not identify particular candidates or campaigns that Russia might support through its actions.

US officials have said Russia supported Mr Trump in 2016 and took steps to help his campaign and harm Mrs Clinton’s candidacy. Intelligence officials briefed politicians in February about Russian interests in this year’s election. Russia has denied the interference.

The memo warns of eight possible Russian tactics, dividing them into what officials say are “high” and “moderate” threats.

Among the high threats are the possibility Russia could hack and leak information like it did in the 2016 campaign, when emails stolen from the Clinton campaign by Russian hackers were published by WikiLeaks, and in the 2017 French presidential race.

Other high threats include that Russia could use “state-controlled media arms to propagate election-themed narratives to target audiences”, use economic and business levers to gain influence inside a campaign or administration, and rely on fake social media personas to promote Russian interests and sway American opinion.

Lesser threats include targeting or manipulating election infrastructure, such as voter databases and vote-tallying systems, and providing financial support to American candidates or parties.

The possibility the Kremlin could covertly advise candidates and campaigns is also described as a moderate threat, something US officials do not routinely highlight in public when they warn of Russian election interference.

The memo says “Russia has sought to take advantage of countries that have perceived loop­holes in laws preventing foreign campaign assistance”.

That tactic has not yet been observed in the US, the officials wrote, though the document notes that Russian strategists believed to be working for Yevgeny Prigozhin, a wealthy businessman known as “Putin’s chef” because of his ties to the Russian President, “were involved in political ­campaigning in approximately 20 different African countries ­during 2019”.

An October report from the Stanford internet Observatory detailed a Facebook operation in African countries, attributed to entities tied to Mr Prigozhin, that supported individual candidates in some instances, pushed particular narratives and bolstered or disparaged governments in ways consistent with Russia’s foreign policy agenda.

Mr Prigozhin was among the Russians indicted in special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation for his role in a furtive social media campaign aimed at sowing discord among Americans ahead of the 2016 US election.

The document is unclassified but marked as “For Official Use Only”. It was prepared by cyber experts at Homeland Security and the FBI, and co-ordinated with other federal agencies.

AP