The United States has announced a series of measures to combat Russian influence in the November 2024 presidential election as the Biden administration seeks to prevent outsiders from influencing votes.

Two employees of the Russian state media outlet Russia Today (RT) were charged, dozens of internet domains were seized for “malicious influence campaigns” and a new visa restriction policy was introduced as part of efforts to curb foreign influence.

Let’s take a look at what we know so far:

What has the government done?

According to investigations by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the U.S. Department of Justice, the State Department, and the Treasury Department were involved in one of the largest coordinated government actions against foreign influence.

According to an indictment unsealed by the Justice Department on Wednesday, two senior employees of the state-funded broadcaster RT used shell companies and false identities to pay a Tennessee-based media company $10 million to create content that would benefit Russia.

US Attorney General Merrick Garland told reporters that the operation involved millions of followers. He never revealed that it was run by Moscow and falsely claimed that it was funded by a private investor.

The defendants, Kostiantyn Kalashnikov and Elena Afanasyeva, who live in Russia, are accused of conspiracy to launder money and conspiracy to violate the law on registration of foreign agents.

The US-based media company is Tenet Media, which contracts a network of pro-Trump American influencers who publish right-wing content. Neither Tenet Media nor Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump were named in the indictment, but the descriptions could easily be linked to those of the company.

According to the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), sanctions were imposed on a total of ten individuals and two companies.

It said the designations added to the US State Department’s blacklist of the Rossiya Segodnya media group and five of its subsidiaries – RIA Novosti, RT, TV-Novosti, Ruptly and Sputnik – as “foreign missions”.

The State Department has also imposed visa restrictions on the individuals concerned and offered a reward of up to $10 million for information about foreign interference in the U.S. election.

The Justice Department also announced the seizure of 32 Internet domains that were “used in foreign influence campaigns directed by the Russian government.”

The State Department and White House have said that Russian President Vladimir Putin directed some of these influence operations.

“We believe Mr. Putin is influencing these actions,” said National Security Council spokesman John Kirby.

According to the US Attorney General, the company, allegedly founded by Russia in Tennessee, published hundreds of videos with “commentary on events and issues in the United States, such as immigration, inflation, and other domestic and foreign policy issues.”

“The American people have a right to know when a foreign power is attempting to exploit the free exchange of ideas in our country to spread its own propaganda,” Garland said, adding that the U.S. justice system is sending the message that it has “zero tolerance” for foreign influence operations.

The Tennessee-based operation leveraged a network of media personalities, including Dave Rubin, Tim Pool, Lauren Southern and Benny Johnson, who together have a following of tens of millions on their social media pages..

Several influencers stated on social media that they had no knowledge of Russian connections of the broadcaster that had hired them to provide their content and that they were “victims” of the alleged plot.

Statement on the Justice Department’s indictment:

These allegations clearly show that I and other commenters were victims of this conspiracy.

I knew absolutely nothing about these fraudulent activities. Period.

“People of the Internet” was a silly show about viral videos that ended… pic.twitter.com/KQHYDUi3ot

— Dave Rubin (@RubinReport) 4 September 2024

“My lawyers will go after anyone who says or suggests otherwise,” 37-year-old right-wing commentator and YouTuber Benny Johnson wrote in a post on X, threatening to warn him against any accusation that he was collaborating with Russia.

What does the Russian side say?

The Kremlin has consistently denied accusations that it is actively interfering in the US elections. Official comments sometimes give the impression that Moscow would even prefer a Kamala Harris presidency.

In a speech on Thursday, the Russian president was sarcastic about the Democratic candidate amid accusations that he favored Republicans in the White House. Putin said Biden “recommended voters to support Ms. Harris, we will support her too,” adding: “Her laughter is so infectious that you can see that everything is fine with her.”

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said in a statement on Thursday that Russia’s reaction to Wednesday’s US moves would be harsh and “make everyone shudder.”

RT responded sarcastically with a message posted on its website by deputy editor-in-chief Anna Belkina: “You are calling from 2016 and demanding back all your hackneyed cliches.”

“There are three certainties in life: death, taxes, and RT’s interference in the American election,” she wrote.

Why would Russia do this?

According to US authorities, Russia is interfering in the upcoming US elections with a view to the Ukraine war.

Moscow reportedly wants to see Trump as president for a second time because the Republican candidate has repeatedly expressed his dissatisfaction with the tens of billions of dollars in aid payments to Ukraine.

According to US authorities, Russia is also trying to sow discord and unrest in the US and create a feeling of economic and political uncertainty. They also accuse China and Iran of exerting influence and interference for years.

China and Iran have rejected these allegations and Tehran has also repeatedly denied involvement in the Ukraine war.

Iran’s mission to the United Nations wrote a letter to the Security Council on Thursday saying it was “both ironic and hypocritical” that the United States, Britain and France continued to accuse Iran of contributing to the war, considering that its arms exports had “prolonged” the war.

US authorities said they are continuing efforts to combat jamming.