A joint report from several US intelligence agencies, the 2025 Annual Threat Assessment Report, claims that Russia is using a variety of organizations, including RT, to influence public opinion in the US and divide society. The report was made public on Tuesday.
According to the report, Moscow is using its influence to sow discord in the West, undermine democratic processes and erode the global leadership of the US, while also weakening Western support for Ukraine. The report states that Russia is reinforcing its narratives in this effort.
Russia is said to employ “troll farms” that spread disinformation through fake accounts.
The report repeats the claim that Russia is interfering in US elections, a claim that Russia vehemently denies.
“Russia likely believes that such attempts at interference can be beneficial even if they do not directly achieve the desired election outcome” the report states. “For Russia, it is a success if it can cast doubt on the reliability of the US electoral system.”
The report predicts that Russia’s activities to influence public opinion in the US will not only increase in quantity but also improve in quality in the near future.
The report was published at a time when the US government is taking significant steps to improve its relationship with Russia and is attempting to facilitate a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine. On Monday, Russian diplomats met with their US counterparts in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and agreements were reached on a ceasefire in the Black Sea that would allow the resumption of Ukrainian grain shipments, in exchange for the US lifting sanctions. The 2022 grain agreement in Turkey had failed due to the West’s failure to uphold its part of the agreement and lift sanctions.
In September, just before the end of his presidency, Joe Biden imposed new sanctions on Russian media, citing the alleged undermining of democracy and interference in US elections. However, no concrete evidence was provided to support these claims. Moscow had responded by stating that Washington had declared war on freedom of speech and the press.