And they’re unhappy, because they’ve been discovered, uncovered, and must now recover from their own undercover shenanigans.

On September 4th, the U.S. government announced a number of actions that it had taken against a dozen Russian individuals, two entities, 32 internet domains, and others in retaliation for — as expressed by a U.S. Treasury official — having engaged in a “nefarious campaign to covertly recruit unwittingly American influencers in support of their malign activity.” [Sam Cabral, BBC News, September 4, 2024.]

One of the principal targets of the U.S. actions was Russia’s state-controlled TV network known as RT (formerly Russia Today), for its widespread campaign to interfere with the upcoming U.S. presidential election. RT’s head, Margarita Simonyan, has been sanctioned for alleged attempts to harm “public trust in our institutions.” And two of RT’s Moscow-based managers — Kostiantyn Kalashnikov and Elena Afanasyeva — have been charged with paying content creators on U.S. soil to “pump pro-Russia propaganda and disinformation” to American audiences. [Id.]

Additionally, 32 internet domain names used to “covertly promote AI-generated false narratives” on social media have been seized; other media outlets have been designated as “foreign missions,” requiring them to report under the U.S. Foreign Agents Registration Act; and a $10 million reward has been offered for information on hackers associated with the Russian group known as Russian Angry Hackers Did It (RaHDit). And that’s just for openers.

Holy crap! You can’t believe anything you see, hear or read any longer. It’s a crazy, disturbing world out there. And it’s about to get crazier . . . because the Russians wasted no time in shouting about getting back at us for daring to retaliate against them . . .

They started with their customary “turn the tables” routine, accusing the U.S. of doing exactly what they themselves have done. Maria Zakharova, Russia’s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, said in a statement:

“When the authorities resort to such primitive ways of influencing their voters, this is the decline of ‘liberal democracies.’ . . . There will be a response.

“We warn that attempts to expel Russian journalists from the territory of the United States, create unacceptable conditions for their work or any other forms of obstruction of their activities, including with the use of visa tools, will become the basis for taking symmetrical and/or asymmetric retaliatory measures against the American media.” [Id.]

Excuse me . . . I’m sorry for losing control. I thought Dmitry Peskov was the only Russian official who could make me laugh like that. But this Zakharova chick is positively hilarious!

Has she already forgotten about Evan Gershkovich? Alsu Kurmasheva? Vladimir Kara-Murza — all released from their Siberian penal colonies just over a month ago in trade for a few Russian spies and a KGB assassin? Would she like to discuss “unacceptable conditions” and “obstruction of their activities?”

And then there are Russia’s own independent media, who suffered a level of tightened control that made it impossible for them to continue operating, and finally resulted in their shutting down when they were designated “foreign agents” — media outlets such as Novaya Gazeta, and TV broadcaster Echo Moskvy.

There have been the usual back-and-forth insults, charges and counter-charges, so reminiscent of the Cold War years. In those days, it was easier to hide in the shadows; today, everything leaves an electronic trail that is not just difficult, but is virtually impossible to continue covering indefinitely. And the U.S. seems to have found — likely not all, but many — of Russia’s electronic hiding places. And they’re not happy.

The two governments will have their day, exchanging accusations and mostly meaningless penalties; and in the end there will be little, if any, significant change. Russia, China, Iran, North Korea — all of our political adversaries will continue trying to undermine democracy throughout the West in any way they can. And with the internet, social media, and artificial intelligence at their disposal, it will become more and more difficult for us, as individuals, to distinguish the real from the fake.

So be careful out there in Cyberspace . . . it’s a strange and often scary new world.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
9/6/24