U.S. Election Interference: Russia Should Not Be The Only Suspect

On August 18, U.S. President Donald Trump published a Tweet in which he wrote “All of the fools that are so focused on looking only at Russia should start also looking in another direction, China”.

The tweet went largely uncommented on until Sunday, when ABC news interviewed U.S. National Security Adviser John Bolton. Bolton claimed that China, North Korea and Iran had all likely interfered in the U.S. presidential elections in 2016.

 “I can say definitively that it’s a sufficient national security concern about Chinese meddling, Iranian meddling and North Korean meddling that we’re taking steps to try and prevent it,” Bolton told ABC News

Bolton, however, refused to offer specific examples of current Chinese interference. He just added “those are the four countries that [they’re] most concerned about”.

There is no clear evidence that China meddled or has plans to meddle in U.S. politics, and Chinese President Xi Jinping may not want to give the famously volatile President Trump a reason to strengthen the ongoing trade restrictions aimed at China. North Korea has recently taken steps to enhance its diplomatic relations with the USA, seems an unlikely threat. Iran may now have reason to retaliate against the U.S. under Trump, who reapplied sanctions and has repeatedly criticism the Iran nuclear deal.

The investigation on meddling during the U.S elections has been almost exclusively oriented towards Russia so far. Trump regularly criticizes the investigation and, Sunday night, called it “McCarthyism at its WORST!”

By Antoine Dewaest

Photo: John Bolton speaks with ABC- August 18-Screen capture from Twitter