The United States intends to beef up its meddling efforts using Russian graduates of American exchange programs to interfere in the Russian presidential elections, the press office of the Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) reported, citing the director of the service, Sergei Naryshkin.
"Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) Director Sergey Naryshkin stated that, based on the information received by the Service, as the Russian presidential elections approach, US security agencies are devising increasingly sophisticated methods of illegal interference in the democratic procedures. Washington plans to step up efforts with Russians who are graduates of American exchange programs," the statement says.
The US believes that Russian scholarship holders of American programs could potentially become the backbone of this fifth column with "proper handling", Naryshkin maintained.
"According to the State Department's calculations, the number of Russian scholarship holders of American educational and cultural programs, such as Access, Advance, FLEX, Fulbright, Global UGRAD, Summer Work and Travel, and others, exceeds 80,000 people. With 'proper handling,' as the Americans believe, they can replace the unsystematic opposition that has fled to the West en masse and become the core element of the fifth column," the statement continued.
The agency also noted that Washington seeks to get Russian scholarship holders involved in hammering out new sanction schemes to pressure Russia.
"Washington is escalating efforts to restore contacts with these citizens, establishing confidential communication with them. The plan involves actively engaging former scholarship recipients in a political struggle against the Russian authorities. A program for such an endeavor is already in the works, including training sessions in neighboring countries. The main emphasis will be on teaching participants methods of fueling interethnic and social discord, interfering in elections, and discrediting the leadership of the Russian Federation on social media. Special attention at meetings will be given to refining secure communication with American 'case managers.' Washington also hopes to involve scholarship recipients in the preparation of new mechanisms for sanctions pressure on Russia," the statement said.
The Foreign Intelligence Service emphasized that in the run-up to the Russian presidential elections, the US is seizing every opportunity to stir up the situation in the country. "Apparently, in the not-so-far-off future, the State Department will take on the alumni of Anglo-American daycare centers and schools," the statement concluded.