Indictment Against 12 Russian Intelligence Officers for Interference in U.S. Elections

The U.S. Department of Justice, in a report published on Friday, July 13, has accused 12 Russian intelligence officers of hacking the computers of Hillary Clinton and the Democratic Party during the 2016 presidential election. This indictment against the Russian intelligence officers, whose names and service locations are also mentioned, was released just three days before the meeting of the presidents of the United States and Russia. This indictment was issued based on the investigations of Robert Mueller's team, the special counsel for the case regarding 'Russian interference in the 2016 elections.' President Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin are scheduled to meet this Monday in Helsinki, the capital of Finland. In this context, Reuters reported that this indictment is the most detailed accusation specifically against Russia regarding interference in favor of Mr. Trump's campaign. Russia denies these allegations. The report adds that Rod Rosenstein, the Deputy Attorney General of the United States, also stated that the indictment does not accuse any American citizen of collusion with Russia. He also mentioned that he had briefly informed Mr. Trump about the report of this indictment earlier this week. The Department of Justice report states that officers of the Russian military intelligence agency hacked the computer networks of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, the Democratic National Committee, and Ms. Clinton's campaign, and published some information under various titles on the internet. Mr. Mueller is also investigating the possible collaboration of Mr. Trump's campaign with Russia during the 2016 elections. Earlier this February, Mr. Mueller indicted 13 citizens and three Russian companies for interfering in the U.S. presidential elections through widespread misinformation and traveling to the U.S. to gather information. However, Reuters writes that this new indictment directly accuses the Russian government of electoral interference for the first time. The report adds that U.S. intelligence agencies are convinced that under Mr. Putin's orders, Russian operatives intervened in the last U.S. presidential election through propaganda and hacking. Hours before the release of Mr. Mueller's report, Mr. Trump, who was traveling to Britain, described Mr. Mueller's investigations as a blow to U.S.-Russia relations. Simultaneously, Mr. Trump's lawyer, referring to the released indictment in a tweet, stated that 'this is good news for all Americans. No American has been accused of collusion with Russia, and it is time for Mueller to stop the investigation against the president and say that Trump is completely innocent.'