"The two sides discussed new assistance projects, which will aim to strengthen the cybersecurity of Ukraine’s election systems and critical infrastructure, support implementation of Ukraine’s national cyber strategy, enhance cyber incident response capacity, raise cybersecurity awareness, and provide training on cybersecurity workforce development and digital forensics," the statement reads.
In September 2017, the United States and Ukraine conducted their first bilateral dialogue on cybersecurity in Kiev. Washington then pledged to allocate over $5 million to enhance cybersecurity in Ukraine.
In June, the Ukrainian Central Election Commission said it was preparing to ensure the cybersecurity of the presidential and parliamentary elections that will take place in the country in 2019. Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko alleged in August that the elections would give Russia an opportunity to meddle in Ukraine's affairs.
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Over the recent years, Russia has repeatedly been accused of carrying out cyberattacks against other countries, including Ukraine, the United States, France, the United Kingdom and Germany, and attempting, in particular, to influence the results of elections.
Moscow has repeatedly refuted claims of having links to cyberattacks and of alleged attempts to meddle in other states' domestic affairs, noting that these claims were unfounded.
