U.S. INTELLIGENCE LEAKS SOME DETAILS OF RUSSIAN POLITICAL INTERFERENCE

Yes, dudes, your shitposts were hacked and weaponised by the Kremlin.

A U.S. intelligence review commissioned by the Biden government this summer and released in a cable briefing to journalists on Tuesday (13th Sept.) revealed some details of Russian influence on the elections of foreign countries.

In order to protect sources -- and possibly prevent similar revelations about U.S. influence on foreign elections -- only a tiny amount of information was released. But, according to this "tip of the iceberg", Russia spent hundreds of millions on secret political campaigns in just a few countries.

The money was distributed by the FSB, the rebranded KGB, and Russian oligarchs, sometimes using cryptocurrency.

As reported by the Washington Post:

The cable, which officials provided to reporters, said that Russian political financing was sometimes overseen by Russian government officials and legislators, and had been executed by bodies including Russia’s Federal Security Service.

The démarche also named Russian oligarchs it said were involved in “financing schemes,” including Yevgeniy Prigozhin and Aleksandr Babakov.[...]

Moscow has used cryptocurrency, cash and gifts to shape political events in other countries, often employing accounts and resources of Russian embassies to do so, the cable said.

The countries mentioned in the briefing only included Albania, Montenegro, Madagascar, "possibly Ecuador," and one unnamed Asian country, while the amount of funding referred to was at least $300 million. 

Russia has secretly funneled at least $300 million to foreign political parties and candidates in more than two dozen countries since 2014 in an attempt to shape political events beyond its borders, according to a new U.S. intelligence review.

Moscow planned to spend hundreds of millions of dollars more as part of its covert campaign to weaken democratic systems and promote global political forces seen as aligned with Kremlin interests, according to the review, which the Biden administration commissioned this summer.

A senior U.S. official, who like other officials spoke to reporters Tuesday on the condition of anonymity to discuss intelligence findings, said the administration decided to declassify some of the review’s findings in an attempt to counter Russia’s ability to sway political systems in countries in Europe, Africa and elsewhere.

“By shining this light on Russian covert political financing and Russian attempts to undermine democratic processes, we’re putting these foreign parties and candidates on notice that if they accept Russian money secretly we can and we will expose it,” the official said.

Usually, the money was given to candidates the Kremlin wanted to win or to "shell companies, think tanks and other means to influence political events, sometimes to the benefit of far-right groups."

Most of the activity seems to have begun in 2014, something that has been repeatedly commented on by Colin Liddell, one of the founders of the Alt-Right, who noticed the Nazification and weaponisation of the Alt-Right from that specific year. In an article about Andrew Anglin and the Daily Stormer published in March, 2022, Liddell wrote:

It is also noticeable that Daily Stormer activity and internet prominence greatly increased in 2014, following the Ukrainian revolution. This was a watershed moment for the Kremlin, when Russian-backed Black ops on the internet intensified. Sadly, very few in the Alt-Right realised the danger posed by Anglin and Russia's Nazification of the Alt-Right, although I am glad to say I was one of them, making major attacks on the Stormer, which provoked a major response by Anglin.

This pattern is now being confirmed by U.S. intelligence sources:

The senior official said the U.S. government detected an uptick in Russian covert political financing in 2014. The review did not address Russian activities within the United States.

Assessments by both U.S. spy agencies and a bipartisan Senate investigation concluded that Russia under President Vladimir Putin launched a campaign to interfere in the 2016 presidential election to assist then-candidate Donald Trump.

It should be stressed, once again, that it is highly unusual for intelligence agencies to release this kind of information for operational reasons. The U.S. may be doing this to raise awareness of the phenomenon or as a warning to Russia.

Since early this year the White House has taken the unusual step of repeatedly releasing declassified intelligence related to Moscow’s intentions and actions related to Ukraine, part of an attempt to push back on Putin’s ambitions there and counteract what U.S. officials have described as Russian disinformation operations.

A State Department démarche Monday to U.S. embassies in more than 100 countries described the alleged Russian activities and suggested steps the United States and its allies can take to push back, including sanctions, travel bans or the expulsion of suspected Russian spies involved in political financing activities.

It should also be stressed that these revelations are just the tip of the iceberg:

U.S. diplomats are briefing counterparts in other countries about the activities, which American officials believe could go far beyond the nations and sums that have been identified.

“We think this is just the tip of the iceberg,” the senior official said. “So rather than sit on the sidelines, we are sharing these response measures.”[...]

While the review did not address Russian influence efforts in the United States, the senior official acknowledged that issue remains a major challenge requiring continued work to safeguard the U.S. political system and elections.

THE FINAL BOSS OF WHAT REALLY HAPPENED TO THE ALT-RIGHT