This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/dec/29/barack-obama-sanctions-russia-election-hack
The article has changed 11 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Obama orders sanctions on Russia after campaign hacking during US election | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| The Obama administration on Thursday announced its retaliation against Russia for its efforts to interfere with the US electoral process, ordering a range of sanctions that included the expulsion of 35 Russian diplomats and the closure of two Russian compounds based the US. | |
| In a statement, Obama said Americans should “be alarmed by Russia’s actions” and pledged further action. The announcement comes weeks after the president said he would respond to cyber attacks by Moscow “at a time and place of our choosing”. | |
| US intelligences services believe Russia ordered the cyber attack on the Democratic National Committee, Hillary Clinton’s campaign and other political organizations. | US intelligences services believe Russia ordered the cyber attack on the Democratic National Committee, Hillary Clinton’s campaign and other political organizations. |
| “I have issued an executive order that provides additional authority for responding to certain cyber activity that seeks to interfere with or undermine our election processes and institutions, or those of our allies or partners,” Obama said. | “I have issued an executive order that provides additional authority for responding to certain cyber activity that seeks to interfere with or undermine our election processes and institutions, or those of our allies or partners,” Obama said. |
| “Using this new authority, I have sanctioned nine entities and individuals: the GRU and the FSB, two Russian intelligence services; four individual officers of the GRU; and three companies that provided material support to the GRU’s cyber operations. | “Using this new authority, I have sanctioned nine entities and individuals: the GRU and the FSB, two Russian intelligence services; four individual officers of the GRU; and three companies that provided material support to the GRU’s cyber operations. |
| “In addition, the secretary of the treasury is designating two Russian individuals for using cyber-enabled means to cause misappropriation of funds and personal identifying information.” | “In addition, the secretary of the treasury is designating two Russian individuals for using cyber-enabled means to cause misappropriation of funds and personal identifying information.” |
| Obama added: “These actions are not the sum total of our response to Russia’s aggressive activities. We will continue to take a variety of actions at a time and place of our choosing, some of which will not be publicized.” | Obama added: “These actions are not the sum total of our response to Russia’s aggressive activities. We will continue to take a variety of actions at a time and place of our choosing, some of which will not be publicized.” |
| Democratic lawmakers applauded the president’s action and emphasized bipartisan support for a thorough investigation into Russian hacking. | |
| “I hope the incoming Trump administration, which has been far too close to Russia throughout the campaign and transition, won’t think for one second about weakening these new sanctions or our existing regime,” incoming Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer said in a statement. | |
| “Both parties ought to be united in standing up to Russian interference in our elections, to their cyber attacks, their illegal annexation of Crimea and other extra-legal interventions.” | |
| Ben Cardin, the top Democrat on the Senate foreign relations committee, called for further action by the new Congress when it convenes in January. | |
| “The executive branch has acted,” he said, “but it is imperative the legislative branch now pick up the ball and move it forward. Congressional sanctions can complement and strengthen these new executive sanctions.” | |
| Trump and Republican sources have consistently rejected reports of Russian interference in the election, the most prominent examples of which involved the compromising of email accounts belonging to Democratic party bodies. On Thursday, GOP leaders were quick to frame the sanctions as too little too late. | |
| “Russia does not share America’s interests,” House speaker Paul Ryan said in a statement. “In fact, it has consistently sought to undermine them, sowing dangerous instability around the world. | |
| “While today’s action by the administration is overdue, it is an appropriate way to end eight years of failed policy with Russia. And it serves as a prime example of this administration’s ineffective foreign policy that has left America weaker in the eyes of the world.” | |
| Trump, who has been criticised for a perceived closeness to Putin, has questioned the intelligence community’s conclusion that Russia hacked the Democratic National Committee and the reported finding by the CIA that Moscow meddled in the presidential election in his favor. | |
| On Wednesday, asked by reporters at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida if the US should sanction Russia over hacking activities, he said: “I think we ought to get on with our lives. | On Wednesday, asked by reporters at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida if the US should sanction Russia over hacking activities, he said: “I think we ought to get on with our lives. |
| “I think that computers have complicated lives very greatly. The whole age of computer has made it where nobody knows exactly what’s going on.” | “I think that computers have complicated lives very greatly. The whole age of computer has made it where nobody knows exactly what’s going on.” |