WASHINGTON: The United States (US) accused Russian and Iranian entities of trying to meddle in this year’s US election and imposed sanctions on them on Tuesday.
An organization connected to Russia’s military intelligence agency and a subsidiary of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps, the US Treasury Department said in a statement that their goals were to “stoke socio-political tensions and influence the US electorate during the 2024 US election.”
The Cognitive Design Production Center planned influence operations since at least 2023, the Treasury said, while the Moscow-based Center for Geopolitical Expertise (CGE) circulated disinformation about candidates in the election and directed and subsidised the creation of deepfakes.
The Treasury said CGE also manipulated a video to produce “baseless accusations concerning a 2024 vice presidential candidate.”
