Despite the preponderance of evidence supplied by the U.S. intelligence community, the Trump administration isn’t keen on speaking out against Russia and its interference in the 2016 election. Nikki Haley, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nation, doesn’t toe the company line in this regard. For months, Haley has publicly said that Russia can’t be trusted and that the vulnerabilities Russia exposed cannot go ignored. On Thursday, Haley took it a step further and said Russian cyberattacks were “warfare.”
Appearing on a panel with former Secretaries of State Madeline Albright and Condoleezza Rice, Haley touched upon fake social media accounts and how misinformation spreads:
“When a country can come interfere in another country’s elections, that is warfare. It really is because you’re making sure the democracy shifts from what the people want to giving out that misinformation. And we didn’t just see it here. … They are doing this everywhere and this is their new weapon of choice.”
The comments echoed similar ones Haley made over the summer where she said Russia was sowing chaos in multiple countries with its actions. “The Russians, God bless them, they’re asking why are Americans anti-Russian? And why have we done sanctions? Well don’t interfere in our elections and we won’t be anti-Russian,” she added.
Haley added that the public sector and platforms like Facebook and Twitter need to work together to stop fake Russian accounts as part of wider efforts to hold Russia accountable.
(Via CNN)