In response to the vast SolarWinds cyberespionage affair and the 2020 presidential interference attributed to Moscow, the United States government of Joe Biden on Thursday (April 15) announced a series of financial sanctions against Russia and the United States. expulsion of ten Russian diplomats.
Russia promised a response on Thursday “Inevitable” to the new sanctions decreed by the United States against him, and summoned the American ambassador to Moscow for a “Difficult conversation”. “The United States is not ready to accept the objective reality of a multipolar world without American hegemony. (…) Such aggressive behavior will receive a strong retaliation. The response to sanctions will be inevitable ”, said Russian diplomacy spokeswoman Maria Zakharova.
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SolarWinds: Russia officially accused
The United States has officially accused Russia of being behind the very sophisticated cyber espionage operation that affected the SolarWinds company in 2020. In a statement, the White House claims that this operation was carried out by the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR), also naming the hacker group APT29, known as Cozy Bear and said to be very close to SVR.
In December, the discovery of computer intrusions at government entities and technology companies caused panic in the United States. The investigation then revealed that hackers had managed to compromise the systems of the company SolarWinds, which markets Orion management software, and to distribute a corrupted version of this software. A “supply chain” attack, which involves installing malware by hacking into a vendor and sending corrupted updates to consumers.
The total number of victims who installed an infected version of Orion is still unclear, the White House reporting more than 16,000 affected entities in its latest press release.
“Public response”
The President of the United States, Joe Biden, maintains his proposal to organize a summit with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, ” in the coming months “, considering that a meeting is “Crucial” for “Stop” the” climbing “, before she “Degenerates”, said a senior US official on Thursday. This official clarified that part of the American reprisals would “To remain secret”. He did not say whether it was a computer counterattack or another response.
“The measures we are announcing today represent our public response, which we hope will be seen as firm, but proportional”, added this official during an exchange with journalists. “We want to make it clear that we have no will to fuel an escalation with Russia”, he insisted, assuring that Joe Biden had informed Vladimir Putin of these reprisals during his phone call this week.
In that same conversation, the US president made the offer of a summit “In a third country” and ” in the coming months “. This official warned that the United States reserved the right to respond to a possible Russian counter-response, depending on the size of it.
“International destabilization”
The President of the United States has signed a decree that will allow Russia to be punished again, so as to engender “Strategic and economic consequences, (…) if it continues or promotes an escalation of its actions of international destabilization ”, warned the White House in a statement. As part of this executive order, the US Treasury prohibited US financial institutions from directly purchasing debt issued by Russia after June 14. It also sanctions six Russian tech companies accused of supporting Moscow’s cybernetic intelligence activities.
The Treasury also sanctions thirty-two entities and persons accused of having attempted, on behalf of the Russian government, to“Influence the 2020 presidential election in the United States”, according to the White House.
In partnership with the European Union, Canada, the United Kingdom and Australia, the United States government also imposes sanctions on eight individuals and entities. “Associated with the persistent occupation and repression in Crimea”. As for the accusations of bounties offered by Russia to the Taliban to attack American or foreign soldiers in Afghanistan, the White House remains, for the moment, vague, affirming that this matter is “Managed through diplomatic, military and intelligence channels”.
