CNN: US intelligence agencies scare Americans with Russian interference in presidential elections
National Security Agency (NSA) Director Paul Nakasone and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director Christopher Wray believe that Russia may try to interfere in the US presidential election in 2024, linking it to the conflict in Ukraine, CNN reported.
“This is an important year for them (Russia – ed.). They are watching it (the US election) and I would assume that’s where they would want to make an impact, given the situation in Ukraine,” the TV channel quoted Nakasone as saying at a conference in New York.
Ray agreed with him, noting that the conflict in Ukraine only strengthens Russia’s desire to influence US policy. He added that the stars have “aligned” for Moscow to simultaneously try to achieve military success in Ukraine and interfere in US processes.
In addition, Nakasone and Wray named Russia, China and Iran as the main actors seeking to interfere in the US elections.
During the 2016 election campaign, Donald Trump’s headquarters was under investigation by federal agencies for possible ties between Trump and his aides and Russia. Special Prosecutor Robert Mueller, who already under the Trump presidency investigated the “Russian case” for two years, confirmed the accusations of intelligence agencies against Russia in interference in the election (Moscow denies it), but found no evidence of “collusion” between Trump and Russia, the existence of which was denied by both the Kremlin and the White House.
In turn, Trump, who lost the presidency to Joe Biden after one term, claimed that the US had witnessed “high-level election interference” in which he accused the SMO of involvement.