The trump administration on Thursday sanctioned 19 Russian individuals and five groups for interfering with the 2016 US elections and other “malicious cyber attacks.”
Experts say that this comes as the US joined Britain, France, and Germany in denouncing Russia for its alleged role in a nerve-gas attack on a former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter in southern England. They called it a “clear violation” of international law, but nothing was said about their actions in response.
While President Trump seems to agree that Russia was behind the incident, he has still not given any comments regarding the sanctions.
Russia denies meddling in the US elections but US intelligence agencies have concluded that Russia used hacking, propaganda, and social media to interfere in the 2016 presidential elections.
Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin said in a statement, “The administration is confronting and countering malign Russian cyber activity, including their attempted interference in US elections, destructive cyber-attacks, and intrusions targeting critical infrastructure.”
He said that there would be additional sanctions against Russian government officials and oligarchs for their “destabilizing activities” in the US, though he did not provide a specific time-frame.
The sanctions will supposedly sever their access to the US financial system.