An FBI official has warned that Russia wants to watch Americans “tear ourselves apart” in the run-up to the US elections.
Da Porter, an assistant section chief with the FBI’s Foreign Influence Task Force accused Russia of conducting operations aimed at spreading disinformation.
Mr Porter suggested that this was in an attempt to exploit lines of division in society and sow doubt about the integrity of US elections and the ability of its leaders to govern effectively.
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“The primary objective is not to create a particular version of the truth but rather to cloud the truth and erode our ability to find it, creating a sentiment that no narrative or news source can be trusted at all,” Mr Porter said.
He did not address the briefing or if Russia has a preference for a particular candidate. But he said that Russia was generally engaged in “information confrontation” aimed at blurring facts from fiction and undermining confidence in America’s democratic institutions.
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LeaveEUOffical/Twitter
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Trump styles his ‘You’re fired!’ pose in his Tower office in June 2012. At the time he was known as a reality TV star on The Apprentice
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He was also well known as the patron of the Miss Universe competition
Getty
3/29
Early signs of’s ambition for the presidency can be found everywhere. Not least in his 2011 book ‘Time to get tough: Making America #1 again’
Getty
4/29
Trump with Piers Morgan in November 2010. Piers Morgan has long held that he and are good friends
Getty
5/29
Trump appeared on Fox & Friends, his favourite show, in August 2011
Getty
6/29
Trump considered running in the 2012 election, where he would have faced Barack Obama. He is speaking here at an event for a Republican women’s group
Getty
7/29
Trump was subject to a Comedy Central roast in 2011. He is pictured here being roasted by rapper Snoop Dogg
Getty
8/29
Given that this store is in the lobby of Tower, it can be said that sells merchandise of himself out of his own home
Getty
9/29
Trump held meetings with prominent Republicans when considering his 2012 bid. He is pictured here with Alaska governor Sarah Palin
Getty
10/29
He didn’t end up running in 2012 afterall, instead endorsing Republican candidate Mitt Romney
AFP/Getty
11/29
Trump’s golf course in Aberdeen proved controversial in 2012 when he began lobbying the Scottish government against wind power in order that they wouldn’t install turbines off the shore by his new course
Getty
12/29
He even gave eence to a Scottish parliamentary committee discouraging wind energy
AFP/Getty
13/29
He still found time for a round of course
AFP/Getty
14/29
On 16 June 2015, announced that he would run for the presidency of the United States in the 2016 election as a Republican
Getty
15/29
His campaign was divisive, courting controversy wherever he went. Ultimately he was declared the Republican candidate in June 2016
Getty
16/29
Trump took part in the TV debate against opponent Hillary Clinton on 9 October
Getty
17/29
Trump and wife Melania vote in the presidential election on 8 November 2016
AFP/Getty
18/29
Hillary Clinton conceded defeat at 2:50am on 9 November and president-elect swiftly delivered his victory speech to a crowd of supporters
Getty
19/29
News coverage around the world focused on the huge political upset that’s victory spelled
AFP/Getty
20/29
Trump met with president Obama to discusss transition planning on 10 November.
AFP/Getty
21/29
Donald and Nigel Farage pose in the golden elevator at Tower on 12 November 2016. Farage was the first British politician to meet with after the election
LeaveEUOffical/Twitter
22/29
The inauguration of Donald took place on 20 January 2017.’s press secretary Sean Spicer boasted that the crowd was the ‘largest ever’ to witness an inauguration, a claim that was proved not to be true
Getty
23/29
In his first 100 days as leader, signed 24 executve orders, the most of any president
AFP/Getty
24/29
One of’s most memorable election pledges was to build a wall between the US and Mexico. He is standing here in front of a prototype for a section of the wall
Getty
25/29
Trump’s meetings with other world leaders have proed no short supply of photo opportunities
Getty
26/29
Trump was welcomed to the UK by the Queen and a state banquet was held at Buckingham Palace in his honour
Reuters
27/29
Not everyone welcomed the president. Mass protests were held in London throughout his visits in both 2018 and 2019
EPA
28/29
One of the most significant meetings has held with another leader was with North Korea’s Kim Jong Un. In June 2019, became the first sitting president to set foot in North Korea
Getty
29/29
2020 will see president fight for a second term in office, who knows what the next decade will bring?
Getty
The FBI formed the Foreign Influence Task Force after widespread interference by Russia in the 2016 presidential campaign.
While the task force was meant to focus primarily on Russia, it also covers works to counter influence operations from adversaries including China, North Korea, and Iran.
However, Mr Porter has said that Beijing’s goal is less about creating chaos in the US and more about developing its own economy.
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“To put it simply, in this space, Russia wants to watch us tear ourselves apart, while it seems that China would rather manage our gradual economic decline over the course of generations,” Mr Porter said.
He was speaking at an election security conference on Capitol Hill just days after conflicting accounts emerged of a closed-door briefing between intelligence officials and House lawmakers on threats from foreign nations on the 2020 election.
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Intelligence officials have not commented publicly on the briefing. One intelligence official said lawmakers were not told that Russia was working directly to aid Donald.
However, other people familiar with the meeting said they were told the Kremlin was looking to help Mr’s candidacy.
Carrie Cordero, a former Justice Department national security lawyer, lamented the lack of public information about the briefing.
A recent Senate Intelligence Committee report faulted the Barack Obama administration for not being sufficiently transparent about Russian interference ahead of the 2016 presidential election.
“What I have really been encouraging is that the government be more forthcoming of information that is more indicative of the current election threats,” Ms Cordero said.
She said it remains unclear from the news reporting exactly what message was communicated to the committee.
Additional reporting by Associated Press
