U.S. President Barack Obama is preparing new set of sanctions against Russia for interfering with the 2016 presidential elections, The Washington Post newspaper reported Tuesday. The administration is reportedly finalizing the details.
New sanctions might include “covert action that will probably involve cyber-operations,” the newspaper revealed, citing unidentified U.S. officials. The White House might announce “the public elements of the response” this week.
Earlier this month Obama accused Russia of interfering with U.S. elections by hacking emails of the Democratic National Committee. “The Russian hack had created more problems for the Clinton campaign than it had for the Trump campaign,” Obama said on Dec. 15 in an interview with the NPR radio station. He said that the U.S. would prepare a proper response.
Russian authorities have repeatedly denied the accusations, calling them “unsubstantiated.” Russian President Vladimir Putin, during his yearly press conference on Dec. 23, pointed out that the contents of the hacked emails is much more worrying than hacking itself.
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