Trump signs executive order on sanctions for election interference

U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday signed an executive order that allows sanctions against foreign individuals and companies accused of interfering in U.S. elections.

Details

• Sanctions may apply to individuals or companies accused of interfering in US elections. Interference will be considered attempts by hackers to attack “infrastructure designed for holding elections”, as well as influencing public opinion through coordinated propaganda on the Internet or systematic leaks of confidential political information, Reuters wrote on the eve, citing its own sources.
• the procedure for imposing sanctions Director of National Intelligence Dan Coates described as follows: the intelligence services will decide whether there was an intervention, and transmit this information to the ministries of justice and homeland security. Then, based on their conclusions about the intelligence data, sanctions can be imposed automatically.
• Any agency aware of an attempt by a foreign country to interfere in a US election would be required to report it to Coates.
• The intelligence community will have 45 days to make a judgment on whether the intervention took place and another 45 days to determine how to respond to it. The State Department and Treasury will decide whether to impose additional sanctions.
• By default, sanctions against individuals or companies attempting to interfere in US elections could include asset freezes, restrictions on access to US financial institutions and foreign exchange transactions, and a ban on US citizens from investing in companies involved, Bolton . listed

Context

• In parallel, Congress is considering two more tough bills prepared by senators, which also deal with sanctions for election interference (more on them here and here ). The Trump administration contacted the sponsors of these bills before Trump signed his executive order. The senators themselves make it clear that they are not going to give up their initiatives, and Bolton said that the president is ready to consider the measures they propose, but at the same time, the administration wanted Trump to have the opportunity to independently respond to existing threats.
• Senators are also rushing to get their initiatives through before the midterm congressional elections due in November. But Trump apparently decided to be proactive. “We are doing everything possible to prevent interference in our elections,” Coates commented on the signing of the decree.
• The executive order is the Trump administration's latest attempt to reassure those who fear that Russia might try to interfere again in the election - all despite Trump himself repeatedly expressing doubt that such an attempt had already been made in 2016, writes The Hill.
• “I think his actions speak for themselves,” Bolton said, adding that Trump was “deeply concerned” to prevent foreign interference in US domestic affairs.

Irina Malkova