New Country Threatened by Major Russian Meddling Scandal
ROME—The populist front runners in Italy’s upcoming general election have threatened to sue anyone who says they received some of the $300 million the U.S. claims Russia has been peddling to influence global elections.
Matteo Salvini of Italy’s Lega party, which is polling strong ahead of the Sept. 25 vote—along with Giorgia Meloni’s far-right Brothers of Italy and former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi’s Forza Italia—said Tuesday that his lawyers were ready to file a defamation charge if his name is mentioned tied to the U.S. claim.
On Tuesday, the U.S. State Department released a statement about an intelligence review that says Russia has likely given far more than the known $300 million in donations. “The Kremlin and its proxies have transferred these funds in an effort to shape foreign political environments in Moscow’s favor,” the document said. “The United States will use official liaison channels with targeted countries to share still-classified information about Russian activities targeting their political environments,” State Department spokesman Ned Price said. “In order to fight this, in many ways we have to put a spotlight on it.”
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