Russia Influence Operations Taking Aim at US Military
Russia Influence Operations Taking Aim at US Military
https://www.voanews.com/a/russia-influence-operations-taking-aim-at-us-military/4640751.html?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter
With just days to go until the U.S. midterm elections, there are growing fears that Russia's efforts to undermine U.S. democracy extend far beyond the polls on Nov. 6 or the presidential election in 2020.
Defense and security officials worry that as part of Moscow's plan to sow division and discord, it is trying to conquer the U.S. military — not with bullets or missiles but with tweets and memes.
The tactic is an outgrowth of Russia's overarching strategy to find seams within U.S. society where distrust or anger exist and widen those divisions with targeted messaging.
In the case of the U.S. military, according to current and former U.S. and Western officials, the Kremlin's aim is likely to establish what is known as reflexive control. By seeding U.S. troops with the right type of disinformation, they say, Russia can predispose them to make choices or decisions that are favorable for Moscow.
The exact extent to which U.S. military personnel have been targeted or swayed is unclear.
VOA spoke with multiple defense and security officials, all of whom declined to comment on the nature or scope of Russia's military-oriented influence operations. Still, almost all of the officials admitted Russia's targeting of U.S. military personnel with influence operations, and the way it is being done, is a concern.
"We know it goes on," said Ed Wilson, deputy assistant secretary of defense for cyber policy. "That's why we've amped up and increased the attention that we're paying.
"We're taking a renewed look at how we train and educate the broader force," he said, noting that efforts go beyond just the military to the Defense Department's partner agencies.
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