Biden ready to issue sanctions against Russia in retaliation for cyber espionage

The administration chaired by the Democrat Joe Biden is prepared to issue this Thursday a wide range of sanctions against Russia in retaliation for his recent forays into American affairs through cyber espionage.

According to CBS, the sanctions would punish, among other things, Moscow’s interference in the 2020 presidential elections.

The sanctions could affect more than 30 Russian entities and include the expulsion of at least 10 people from that country from the United States, including intelligence officials and diplomats, according to sources consulted by the chain.

The Biden Administration is also expected to issue an executive order prohibiting US financial institutions from buying ruble bonds from June 2021.

In a call with President Vladimir Putin last Tuesday, President Biden told the Russian leader that the United States “will act firmly” in defense of its national interests.

The US Administration is also expected to address published reports accusing Russia of encouraging Taliban fighters to injure or kill coalition forces in Afghanistan.

According to an unclassified US intelligence report, Putin authorized lobbying campaigns aimed at damaging President Biden’s candidacy during the 2020 elections and boosting former President Donald Trump, says CBS.

“A key element of Moscow’s strategy in this election cycle was the use of representatives linked to Russian intelligence to push narratives of influence, including misleading or unfounded accusations against President Biden,” according to a declassified report released by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

Last year, cybersecurity researchers identified a software hack called SolarWinds, an intrusion that gave cybercriminals access to 18,000 government and private computer networks.

US intelligence has identified hackers in Russia as responsible for the attack, who gained access to digital files from various US government agencies, including the Departments of the Treasury, Justice and State.

In the telephone conversation held on Tuesday, Biden demanded that his Russian counterpart “reduce tensions” with Ukraine and expressed his “concern” about the Russian military mobilization on the border with that country.

During the conversation, Biden also proposed to Putin to hold “a summit in a third country” sometime in the “next few months”, to “talk about all the issues facing the United States and Russia”.

The call was the second between the two to be made public since Biden came to power in January, and it came after Russia announced it had dispatched troops and three airborne units to its western borders.