Russia has spent over R$1.5 billion on campaign finance for candidates worldwide since 2014 – News

Intelligence United State It released a report on Tuesday (13) alleging that Russia has secretly sent at least $300 million (about R$1.5 billion) to foreign political parties and candidates in more than 20 countries since 2014 to gain influence.

A US official said the United States “believes these are underestimates and that Russia may have secretly transferred additional funds in undisclosed cases.” Information about specific countries is not disclosed.

The document cites the case of a Russian ambassador to an unnamed Asian country who allegedly paid millions of dollars to a presidential candidate.

President Joe Biden’s administration has asked for evaluation after Invasion of Ukraine from Russia on February 24, which prompted Washington to try to isolate Moscow and arm Kyiv.

The official said that the United States shares the information it finds with the governments of more than 100 countries, as part of the “Summit of Democracies” initiative, which Biden launched after the defeat of Republican Donald Trump in the elections.

The new assessment does not cover US domestic policy.

In the past, US intelligence services have accused Moscow of interfering in the 2016 election, primarily through its manipulation of social media, to support Trump, who has expressed admiration for Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“The United States is working hard to address our weaknesses, and we urge other countries to do the same,” the official said.