US Congressman proposes creation of National Russian Threat Response Center
US Congressman Joseph Kennedy from Massachusetts proposed the creation of a National Russian Threat Response Center. The relevant bill is published on the congressman’s website.
“The center will be responsible for synchronizing and analyzing information pertaining to Russia from across the intelligence community, diplomatic channels, and law enforcement agencies,” the document states.
The authors of the bill propose that the oversight board of the center be staffed by representatives from the CIA, the Department of State, the Ministry of Defense, the FBI, the US Treasury and other departments. According to the document, the center will operate for 8 years and will be funded in the context of the US Director of National Intelligence’s program.
According to the Boston Herald, the congressman requested $20 million for the creation of the center.
“Russia’s attack on our election was not guided by party affiliation but instead by a deep desire to weaken trust in our institutions and shake the very foundation of our democracy,” Kennedy said in Congress, as cited by the Washington Times.
During his speech, he cited information from a Bloomberg report which claims, citing unnamed investigations, that during the US presidential campaign in 2016, Russian hackers targeted the systems of the Election Commission in at least 39 of 50 states.
US authorities have repeatedly accused Russia of organizing hacker attacks on the US Election Commission’s systems. Moscow denies involvement in the cyber-attacks. Russian President Vladimir Putin said that blaming Russia for the Democratic Party’s failure in the US elections is comparable to antisemitism.