It’s not just that Russia tried to influence our election. Countries try to influence other country’s elections.
ALL THE TIME.
Netanyahu broke diplomatic protocol and going straight to Congress to convince them to shoot down the Obama administration's Iran deal. He failed. Obama was pissed.
But it was sharp-elbowed pursuit of national interests BETWEEN ALLIES.
It also didn't involve hacking into American servers.
They probably hack into American servers all the time. And we probably hack into Israeli servers, just as we tapped Merkel's phone.
Allies spy on each other.
Netanyahu broke diplomatic protocol and going straight to Congress to convince them to shoot down the Obama administration's Iran deal. He failed. Obama was pissed.
But it was sharp-elbowed pursuit of national interests BETWEEN ALLIES.
It also didn't involve hacking into American servers.
They probably hack into American servers all the time. And we probably hack into Israeli servers, just as we tapped Merkel's phone.
Allies spy on each other.
ALL THE TIME.
What allies DON'T do, what the Russians DID do, is to leak the intelligence product of their espionage to degrade their ally's credibility at home and abroad by damaging their democratic institutions.
Which is what the Russians have done to us and NATO and what they also are seeking to do with the European Union.
That is VERY different from what Netanyahu did to us. Or what we did to Andrea Merkel.
The Russians are engaging NATO and the European Union in what the West has called "Hybrid warfare," "little green men" (Ukraine) or, as the Russians call it, "Strategic Deterrence": weakening an adversary's ability to respond effectively to Russian foreign policy initiatives (such as the annexation of Crimea or their military support for Assad in Syria).
What allies DON'T do, what the Russians DID do, is to leak the intelligence product of their espionage to degrade their ally's credibility at home and abroad by damaging their democratic institutions.
Which is what the Russians have done to us and NATO and what they also are seeking to do with the European Union.
That is VERY different from what Netanyahu did to us. Or what we did to Andrea Merkel.
The Russians are engaging NATO and the European Union in what the West has called "Hybrid warfare," "little green men" (Ukraine) or, as the Russians call it, "Strategic Deterrence": weakening an adversary's ability to respond effectively to Russian foreign policy initiatives (such as the annexation of Crimea or their military support for Assad in Syria).
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‘Strategic deterrence’ is described in the military-encyclopaedic dictionary of the [Russian] Ministry of Defence:
A coordinated system of military and non-military (political, diplomatic, legal, economic, ideological, scientific–technical and others) measures taken consecutively or simultaneously
… with the goal of deterring military action entailing damage of a strategic character
… Strategic deterrence is directed at the stabilisation of the military–political situation Russian Strategic Deterrence | 11
… in order to influence an adversary within a predetermined framework, or for the de-escalation of military conflict
… The objects to be influenced through strategic deterrence may be the military–political leadership and the population of the potential adversary state (or coalition of states) … Strategic-deterrent measures are carried out continuously, both in peacetime and in wartime.19
***********
‘Strategic deterrence’ is described in the military-encyclopaedic dictionary of the [Russian] Ministry of Defence:
A coordinated system of military and non-military (political, diplomatic, legal, economic, ideological, scientific–technical and others) measures taken consecutively or simultaneously
… with the goal of deterring military action entailing damage of a strategic character
… Strategic deterrence is directed at the stabilisation of the military–political situation Russian Strategic Deterrence | 11
… in order to influence an adversary within a predetermined framework, or for the de-escalation of military conflict
… The objects to be influenced through strategic deterrence may be the military–political leadership and the population of the potential adversary state (or coalition of states) … Strategic-deterrent measures are carried out continuously, both in peacetime and in wartime.19
***********
The Russians are attempting to de-fang the US, NATO, and the European Union in pursuit of his plan to reunite the old Soviet Union into a new Russian empire.
The Baltic States, Ukraine, Poland, have been there before. And they are very concerned about the West’s ability to deter Russian aggression.
America should be concerned as well.
Russian Strategic Deterrence
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