US President Joe Biden has extended a state of emergency and sanctions for another year in response to significant malicious cyber activity targeting the United States. Russian companies remain under restrictions, as reported by the White House press service. The state of emergency was first introduced on April 1, 2015, and will now remain in place beyond April 1, 2023.
According to representatives of the White House, significant harmful cyber activity continues to pose an unusual threat to national security, foreign policy, and the economy. This decision to extend the sanctions has been taken to prevent any possible attacks on the United States.
In October 2016, the United States accused the Russian authorities of involvement with the WikiLeaks portal, in the release of emails related to the US presidential candidate Hillary Clinton and correspondence of the leadership of the Democratic Party. The United States labeled this as an “attempt to intervene in the US electoral process.”
Following the incident, the former US President, Barack Obama imposed sanctions against the Federal Security Service (FSB), the Russian military intelligence (GRU), and three companies who were identified as providing support for cyber operations. Restrictions were also imposed on 11 individuals and legal entities, who had assets in the United States frozen and were banned from entering the country.
The extension of sanctions and state of emergency shows the United States’ commitment towards protecting the country from malicious cyber activity. Restrictions will continue to apply to Russian companies to prevent attacks on the country’s national security, foreign policy, and the economy.