US intelligence official claims Russia, China, Iran are meddling in presidential election

As US presidential election draw closer, a top intelligence official has stirred new storm with warning over foreign threats. William Evanina, who is the director of the National Counterintelligence and Security Centre, raised fears of a repeat of the 2016 election.

The US intelligence official noted that Russia is backing Donald Trump, China is supporting Joe Biden and Iran is seeking to sow chaos. Back in 2016, Russia was accused of manipulating social media to help Trump and hurt his opponent Hillary Clinton. 

According to a press release, Evanina said, “Russia is using a range of measures to primarily denigrate former Vice President Biden and what it sees as an anti-Russia “establishment”. This is consistent with Moscow’s public criticism of him when he was Vice President for his role in the Obama Administration’s policies on Ukraine and its support for the anti-Putin opposition inside Russia”. 

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The NCSC director noted that the Andriy Derkach, a pro-Russian Ukrainian politician, is spreading claims about corruption to undermine Biden’s candidacy. He added that several Kremlin-linked actors are also seeking to boost Trump’s candidacy on social media and Russian television. 

Evanina even presented evidence of interference by Beijing. The NCSC assessed that China does not want Trump to win the upcoming election. The official noted that China has been expanding its influence ahead of 2020 US presidential election to shape the country's policy environment, pressurise political figures it views as opposed to China’s interests, and deflect and counter-criticism of China. 

The NCSC director said that Beijing recognises that all of the aforementioned efforts might affect the presidential race in United States. Further, Evanina highlighted China’s criticism of Trump’s handling of COVID-19 pandemic, the closure of China’s consulate in Houston and the White House responses to Chinese actions in Hong Kong and the South China Sea. 

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Iran seeking to undermine Trump

National Counterintelligence and Security Centre also believes that Iran is seeking to undermine the US democratic institutions and President Donald Trump. Evanina said that Iranian efforts are aimed to divide the country ahead of 2020 election. 

He said, “Iran’s efforts along these lines probably will focus on on-line influence, such as spreading disinformation on social media and recirculating anti-US content. Tehran’s motivation to conduct such activities is, in part, driven by a perception that President Trump’s reelection would result in a continuation of US pressure on Iran in an effort to foment regime change”. 

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While the upcoming US presidential election are already under siege amid the pandemic, the NCSC director warned that foreign adversaries may try to interfere with election systems by trying to sabotage the voting process, stealing election data systems or questioning the validity of results.

The recent report has also raised concerns on Capitol Hill. Meanwhile, Evanina said that the foreign efforts to influence or interfere with the election are a direct threat to the fabric of the country’s democracy. He assured that the NCSC is doing everything in its power to combat both cyber and influence efforts targeting the democratic process. 

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