Russian intervention in the American elections is confirmed by a criminal charge. What is Trump rejoiced at?

On February 16, the Commission of the US Department of Justice, headed by special prosecutor Robert Muller, made official charges in connection with Russia's intervention of the 2016 US presidential election. The Ministry of Justice’s accusations were brought by three organizations and 13 citizens of the Russian Federation, including Evgeny Prigozhin - the creator of the so -called “troll factory”, a person who is called the “Putin’s cook”. The federal large jury of the metropolitan district of Colombia confirmed the validity of the charges.

"Inform bomb"

On 37 pages - specific facts and details: bank accounts, surnames, dates, amounts of money transfers, email addresses. In total - 99 positions. “The details are capturing the imagination,” the former director of the National (internal) security agency and the CIA commented on the work of the commission.

The document is strikingly different from the very first American intelligence report on the subversive activities of Russian hackers, presented in recent weeks of the Obama administration. There, only general reasoning on the topic were set out in the open part, and for clarity the authors attached the application with photographs, graphics and quotes, completely dedicated to the activities of the Russia Today channel. Moreover, the information about the "brainchild of Mikhail Lesin" was collected hastily and clearly "not the first freshness." However, then the report of the three special services was the basis for the introduction of sanctions, including the rejection of three buildings of the Russian diplomatic mission in the United States: near New York, near Washington and the oldest consultation in America-in San Francisco.

In Moscow, the chief of the RT Margarita Simonyan called the report “Bredov”, and in the Kremlin and the Foreign Ministry said: “Where are the evidence” and “You are all lying”.

That report really resembled the recent “Kremlin list”, presented by the Trump administration to Congress - first of all, a sense of negligence with which it was made.

On Friday, February 16, without exaggeration, in Washington exploded the “information bomb”, which became the main news of the day.

Thanks to leaks, some of the accusations was already mentioned in the American press: the creation by Russian hackers of mass fictitious accounts on leading social networks, the publication of fake news, which, according to the deputy general of the US Rosenstein Prosecutor General, were aimed at "bringing a discord in the country and undermining the faith of American society into democracy." “Russian conspirators” - as they are now officially called in the Ministry of Justice and other state structures and in the local media. They also wrote here about how St. Petersburg Internet trolls pulled Americans, arranged simultaneous rallies of different groups. And in some cases, this virtual management of the “Puppet Theater” led to real confrontations in New York, Texas and other places.

The "conspirators" played on the side of Trump and against Hillary Clinton. Here are some advertisements paid by Russians on social networks: “A large number of black people say: Hillary is not my president”, “There is no Hillary, there is no manipulations”, “Join us #Hillary in prison 2016”, “Donald wants to win terrorism, Hillary wants terrorism, etc.

Something in the prosecution has become a completely new information. Associated with the structures of Evgeny Prigozhin, the “Internet Research Agency” has been interfering with the American elections since 2014, the indictment says. Immediately after the Crimean sanctions, Washington experts note.

The agency used accounts in social networks with non -existent names, two defendants in the list in 2014 visited America to collect intelligence information for future operations. In addition, they came to the country to place equipment to conceal the origin of Internet messages.

Attackers illegally gained access to accounts of US citizens in social networks. Hundreds of accounts on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter on accounts belonged to users in the United States, but were actually managed by Russian hackers.

They used stolen or fictitious American identities, fraudulent bank accounts and fake identification documents.

The defendants positioned themselves as politically and socially active Americans, speaking “for” and “against” specific politicians. They created pages and groups on social networks to communicate with dissatisfied Americans, bought political advertising on social networks. “The Russians also recruited and paid rewards to real Americans to participate in political activities, promoting political campaigns and rallies. At the same time, the conspirators pretended to be activists at the lower level, ”the indictment says.

The Americans did not even know that they were communicating with the Russians.

In particular, approximately on May 29, 2016, the accused and their accomplices through the Internet research agency controlled by the Social Network, under a false pretext, hired a US citizen to stand in front of the White House with a poster “with the 55th anniversary, dear boss!”. The defendants informed the American that the poster was intended for a certain person who "is our leader, our boss, our founder."

The Russian passport Evgeny Prigozhin states that he was born on June 1, 1961.

As noted, presenting a document in Washington, Deputy Minister of Justice Rod Rosenstein, an indictment “serves as a reminder that people on the Internet are not always those who seem.”

Defendants

The charges were brought under eight criminal articles.

All thirteen are accused of a criminal conspiracy against the United States. They tried to deceive the state, violating the legal functions of the Federal Election Commission, the Ministry of Justice and the State Department of the United States.

Data from the indictment for each of the defendants:

• Nastrov Mikhail Ivanovich held the post of general director, the highest position in the "Internet Research Agency", also headed various companies that the agency used to cover its activities. One of these companies is Glavset LLC.

• Prigozhin Evgeny Viktorovich controlled Concord, approved and supported the agency’s operations, the accused and their accomplices were aware of his role in the organization.

• Burchik Mikhail Leonidovich held the post of executive director, was responsible for planning operations. In 2016, he personally met with Prigozhin.

• Krylova Alexandra Yuryevna held the post of director. In 2014, under a false pretext, the United States-Nevada, California, New Mohiko, Illinois, Michigan, Louisian, Texas, New York in order to collect the necessary information for organizing information.

• Polozov Sergey Pavlovich was an employee of technical support, and also was responsible for the purchase of American servers with which the agency masked its activities in the United States.

• Bogacheva Anna Vladislavovna worked as a translator, also visited the United States in order to collect information.

• Bovda Maria Anatolyevna headed the department of translators, and also held a number of other positions.

• Bovda Robert Sergeyevich served as deputy head of the translator department, tried to get to the United States under a false pretext, but received a refusal to provide a visa.

• Aslanov Jaykhun Nasimi Ogly was one of the leaders of the translators department, and also oversaw many operations in interfering in the elections. Aslanov was also listed as the general director of the Azimut company, through which the Koncord Holding Prigozhin financed the activities of the agency.

• Podkopaev Vadim Vladimirovich served as an analyst in the translator department, was responsible for monitoring the political situation in the United States and a selection of content for social networks.

• Vasilchenko Gleb Igorevich was responsible for the publication of content from numerous accounts created by the agency on social networks. At the same time, he seemed to be an American citizen.

• Kaversina Irina Viktorovna was a translator, and also operated on accounts of fictional American citizens that she used to publish content related to the presidential election.

• Vladimir Venkov was an employee of the translator department and oversaw several fake accounts supposedly belonging to US citizens.

By the summer of 2016, the number of employees of the “American department” almost doubled. From the general state of “trolls” (about 200-250 people), their number reached about 80–90 employees.

No charges are charged with American citizens.

Against the United States, notes Senator-Democrat Richard Blumental, “active operational measures” were carried out, and they “continue to be held”-already in connection with the elections in the fall to Congress, where the composition of the House of Representatives and a third of the senators is re-elected, the third elections of the state governors are held.

Another criminal article-“Conspiracy to conduct fraudulent transactions with money transfers and bank accounts”-is charged with the “Internet research agency” and two defendants: Aslanov and Vasilchenko . Fague criminal charges under six more articles are related to the theft of personal data and addressed to the agency, as well as Aslanov , Vasilchenko , Kaversina and Venkova .

I repeat: the document is not just accusations, but dates, numbers, names, online addresses. Moscow demanded evidence?

Why is Trump pleased

Donald Trump, who, according to the testimony of anonymous, but high -ranking sources, was going to dismiss the special prosecutor Muller several times, and Rosenstein deputy prosecutor general to voluntarily retired, very positively met the results of the investigation. “The investigation showed that Russia began interference in the elections back in 2014, long before I was going to be advanced to the president.” In addition, in the conclusion of the Ministry of Justice, it is definitely said: Russia's intervention did not affect the results of the election

“What did I tell you? -The 45th president triumphs now. “All these endless conversations about the connections of my team with the Russians are the lie and fabrication of the fake media.”

“We, Americans, must unite in order to protect the integrity of our democracy and elections,” Trump calls. And this is a person who, at the height of the election race, spoke about the hacking of the sites of the Democratic Party as follows: “I don’t know who could be a hacker: maybe Russia, maybe China, or maybe a 200 kg guy sitting on the bed.”

The indictment on the intervention of the Russian Federation in the elections is “what we have known for a long time,” said Speaker and Secretary Hillary Clinton Nick Merrill: “Our opponent (Russia) laughs at us, he will act again, and the president will not protect us.”

Democrats and Republicans in the Congress welcome the indictment containing an extensive actual base. Many legislators knew about the facts from closed briefings and were guided by the secret intelligence data, adopting the sanctions law last summer. Democrats do not agree with Müller in one thing: with the conclusion that Russia's intervention did not affect the results of the election.

After the publication of the document, it will be possible to talk about any prospects to establish bilateral relations only if the Kremlin at the highest level recognizes the facts from the investigation of Müller.

Or at least, as it was with doping, he will allow: "We gave a reason somewhere ourselves." On the move to call specific accusations “absurdity” seems to be the least productive position.

Now in Washington the question of the resignation of the special prosecutor Müller is most likely to be postponed to an uncertain future. And in Müller's Blinks-the testimony of the former national security assistant Flynn, ex-head of the headquarters of Trump Manafort. The testimonies of the latter are especially curious in the light of the recent scandal-the “Rybabait”, in which Oleg Deripaska and Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Prikhodko appear associated with Manafort. Let me remind you, Manafort, Flynn and others (for example, adviser to the election company Trump George Popadopulos, accused of giving false testimony of the FBI) ​​have already agreed to cooperate with the investigation.

The Russian topic, convinced in Washington, will now definitely develop, and over time we will learn a lot. For example, why did they fly to the American capital on the eve of the publication of the “Kremlin list” of the head of Russian intelligence? And most importantly - the “cook” Prigozhin and his “cook” acted independently or with the knowledge of the Kremlin, who assured Obama and Trump that Russia did not interfere in the American elections?

Washington

The reaction of the Russian authorities to news from the USA. QUOTES
Dmitry Peskov, press secretary of the President of Russia, February 14:

- I do not see the point of commenting on this. The fact is that this is already like, with all due respect to the authors of such statements, for obsession. Russia did not interfere, does not interfere and is not going to intervene in anyone's internal affairs.

Maria Zakharova, official representative of the Foreign Ministry, February 17:

- It turns out that there were 13, according to the US Ministry of Justice. 13 people interfere with the election in the USA?! 13 against billionth budgets of special services? Against intelligence and counterintelligence, against the latest developments and technologies? .. Absurd? Yes. But this is a modern American political reality. By the way, why 13? Apparently, with the rest of the numbers there are no bad associations, and in this case all hope is on them. ( Spelling and punctuation of the author is preserved. - Ed)

Sergey Lavrov, Foreign Minister, February 17:

- The other day, the assistant to the US Minister for Internal Security, responsible for cybersecurity, clearly said that they have no evidence of Russia's intervention in the election affairs of the last presidential campaign. So that for almost a year and a half during which this investigation is going on, not a single fact has flowed into the public sphere, this does not happen in the USA. If there was at least some kind of light, then smoke would be visible immediately.

Leonid Slutsky, representative of the State Duma Committee on International Affairs, February 17:

- The accusations of 13 Russians of interfering with the American elections are obvious - part of the Russophobic campaign and hysteria that prosper in Western society. So far, all this is unfounded, absolutely ridiculous and looks like nonsense. How would 13 people really be able to affect the will of more than 300 million populations of America with its huge state mashmashin and billions of dollars invested in the elections? The story is directly from the Hollywood criminal comedy with the paraphrased name “13 Friends of Putin”.