Iran has started an influence campaign designed to undercut the candidacy of former President Donald Trump, U.S. officials indicated Monday, in an apparent reprisal of a 2020 effort that U.S. intelligence agencies found with high confidence had been authorized by Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.

The update came from officials with the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), FBI and Department of Homeland Security who held a joint election security briefing 99 days before Election Day. The briefing was the second in a series the agencies expect to give before that day, and the officials spoke on the condition of anonymity in order to discuss sensitive assessments.

Iran’s efforts to undermine the Trump campaign appear for the moment to be at cross-purposes with simultaneous efforts by Russia to influence the election in Trump’s favor, even as the two countries have forged closer ties over the course of the war in Ukraine. Biden administration officials revealed last year that Iranian is attempting to help Russia build a drone factory on Russian soil in exchange for military equipment.

  • Gsus4
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    4 months ago

    It does not matter, russia’s intent with influence campaigns is to divide everyone, not to support a specific candidate. They support both fascists and communists as long as they defeat the US from the inside, discredit democratic institutions in every country and break up the multilateral institutions like NATO, UN, EU that restrain the major powers.

    • WanderingVentra@lemm.ee
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      4 months ago

      I mean, sure, probably, but you have to admit that Russia got a lot from their investment into Trump last election. Of course they’d want him back if they could get him.

      • Gsus4
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        4 months ago

        Sure, Trump is the pro-division anti-institutions candidate who russians call the “American Gorbachev”, but not every trumpist fake “conservative” brainwashed by fox news wants their country defaced and not every leftist is thinking clearly about punching trumpers.