'Stop Talking About Our Elections' - U.S Issues Warning to Putin

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland has in a recent press conference outlined sophisticated disinformation campaigns undertaken by Russia to interfere with the U.S. presidential election. Garland emphasized that these efforts involve promoting lies via fake news outlets and real social media influencers.

"The Justice Department's message is clear," Garland stated. "We have no tolerance for attempts by authoritarian regimes to exploit our democratic system of government. We will be relentlessly aggressive in countering and disrupting attempts by Russia and Iran, as well as China or any other foreign malign actor, to interfere in our elections and undermine our democracy."

National Security Council spokesman John Kirby added that these disinformation campaigns have evolved over the years, becoming more sophisticated and better funded.

"We believe Mr. Putin is witting of this scheme — or these schemes, I should say. There's more than one," Kirby noted. He also mentioned that the U.S. has become more adept at detecting and countering these threats.

On the other side, Russian President Vladimir Putin has mocked allegations of meddling in the U.S. presidential election. During a session with senior news leaders of international news agencies at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, Putin dismissed the claims and reiterated Moscow’s readiness to use nuclear weapons if it sees a threat to its sovereignty.

"For some reason, they believe in the West that Russia will never use it," he said, referring to Russia's nuclear doctrine. "If somebody’s actions threaten our sovereignty and territorial integrity, we consider it possible to use all means at our disposal."

Putin also warned that Russia could provide long-range weapons to others to strike Western targets in response to NATO allies allowing Ukraine to use their arms to attack Russian territory. "That would mark their direct involvement in the war against the Russian Federation, and we reserve the right to act the same way," he added.

The ongoing tension between the U.S. and Russia has been exacerbated by the Russian invasion of Ukraine, leading to severe sanctions imposed by the United States.