US sanctions Ukrainian lawmaker for alleged meddling in upcoming Presidential Election

Ukrainian lawmaker Andrii Derkach has been accused of being a Russian spy and sanctioned by the US Treasury Department for his alleged role in Moscow’s attempts to interfere with the upcoming Presidential Election. As per CNN reports, the Ukrainian lawmaker has been found to have links to US President Donald Trump's personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani.

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Multiple 'Russian agents' sanctioned

However, this is no the first time that the controversial lawmaker has been called out for allegedly meddling in the US Election 2020. Earlier, Derkach was accused by the US intelligence community of assisting the Kremlin in its alleged ongoing efforts to undermine the Democratic nominee  Joe Biden in the presidential race.

As per reports, Derkach has been added to the US Treasury department's list of Specially Designated Nationals following which all his assets in the country have been blocked. US President Donald Trump’s personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani is reported to have met Derkach in Ukraine last year.

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As per a press release, US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said, “Andrii Derkach and other Russian agents employ manipulation and deceit to attempt to influence elections in the United States and elsewhere around the world." He added, “The United States will continue to use all the tools at its disposal to counter these Russian disinformation campaigns and uphold the integrity of our election system.”

United States has accused Russia of deploying agents to use manipulation and deceitful tactics in a bid to influence its elections. While commenting on Derkack's specific actions, the US Treasury stated that from at least late 2019 through mid-2020 he was involved in a covert campaign that attempted to cultivate and spread false narratives about US officials. The press release also added that between May and July 2020, Derkach released audio tapes that had been edited with the sole intention of discredit and levying false accusations against US political figures.

Three other Russian nationals, Artem Lifshits, Anton Andreyev, and Darya Aslanova, have also been sanctioned by the US Treasury department. As per reports, these three were employees for the Russian troll factory known as the Internet Research Agency (IRA). The IRA has been accused by the US authorities of using cryptocurrency to fund activities around the world in order to malign international figures.

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