The US claims that through focused disinformation campaigns, the governments of Iran and Russia aimed to split American votes.
Two organizations connected to Russian and Iranian attempts to spread false information to American voters in the run-up to this year’s election have been sanctioned by the US.
Treasury authorities claimed that the two organizations aimed to sow discord among Americans prior to the vote in November when they announced the sanctions on Tuesday.
Both governments have been charged by US intelligence with disseminating false information, including as phony news articles, films, and social media posts, in an effort to sway voters and erode confidence in US elections.
Bradley T. Smith, acting undersecretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence at Treasury, stated in a statement, “The governments of Iran and Russia have targeted our election processes and institutions and sought to divide the American people through targeted disinformation campaigns.”
According to authorities, the Center for Geopolitical Expertise, a Russian organization based in Moscow, was in charge of producing, funding, and disseminating false information about US candidates, including deepfake videos made using artificial intelligence.
The new penalties also apply to the group’s director, who investigators claim collaborated closely with Russian military intelligence officers who were in charge of sabotage and cyberattacks against the West.
According to authorities, the center hired US online companies to produce pro-Russian content, produced a large number of fake news websites that looked authentic, and utilized artificial intelligence (AI) to quickly produce phony videos about American candidates.
Iran’s charge
According to US sources, the Iranian entity, the Cognitive Design Production Center, is a division of Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, which the US has classified as a foreign terrorist organization.
According to officials, the center has been trying to stir up political unrest in the US since at least 2023.
Additionally, Iran has been charged with hacking into the accounts of a number of high-ranking US officials, including key players in Donald Trump’s campaign.
In the months ahead of the election, US intelligence officials said Russia, Iran and China all sought to undermine confidence in US democracy.
They also concluded that Russia sought to prop up the ultimate victor, Trump, who has praised Russian President Vladimir Putin, suggested cutting funds to Ukraine and repeatedly criticised the NATO military alliance. Iran, meanwhile, sought to oppose Trump’s candidacy, officials said.
The president-elect’s first administration ended a nuclear deal with Iran, reimposed sanctions and ordered the killing of Iranian General Qassem Soleimani, an act prompting Iran’s leaders to vow revenge.
Russian and Iranian officials have repeatedly rejected claims that they sought to influence the outcome of the 2024 election.
