US charges Russian woman with poll meddling; intel agencies warn of ‘ongoing campaigns’

The accused was described as chief accountant of the operation that was codenamed “Project Lakhta”, allegedly was funded by Russian businessman Yevgeniy Viktorovich Prigozhin.

The United States has charged a Russian woman with conspiring to interfere in American election including the 2018 mid-term polls next month as the country’s intelligence agencies expressed “concern” separately over ongoing meddling by Russia, China and others such as Iran.

Elena Alekseevna Khusyaynova, a 44-year-old Russian, was accused of being part of a conspiracy run by a Russian businessman to influence opinions and thinking domestically in Russia and abroad in the United States, European Union, Ukraine and other countries that were not specified.

The accused was described as chief accountant of the operation that was codenamed “Project Lakhta”, which, the US department of justice alleged in court filings Friday, was funded by Russian businessman Yevgeniy Viktorovich Prigozhin through two separate companies.

The project started in January 2016 and continues, the US has said. But there were no indications if it had links to the 2016 poll interference being investigated by Special Counsel Robert Mueller, who has indicted multiple Russian individuals and entities, including their intelligence agencies.

The strategic goal of Project Lakhta, which continues to this day, “is to sow discord in the U.S. political system and to undermine faith in our democratic institutions,” said attorney G. Zachary Terwilliger, the lead prosecutor.

The conspirators used thousands of social media handles, accounts and mails to pose as Americans and mask their true location and identity “to create and amplify divisive social and political content targeting U.S. audiences. These accounts also were used to advocate for the election or electoral defeat of particular candidates in the 2016 and 2018 US elections”.

Around the time Khusyaynova was charged, US intelligence agencies issued a joint statement expressing concern about “ongoing campaigns by Russia, China and other foreign actors, including Iran, to undermine confidence in democratic institutions and influence public sentiment and government policies”.

“These activities also may seek to influence voter perceptions and decision making in the 2018 and 2020 US elections,” the statement said.