France Says it Thwarted Attack on Websites from Russian Actors

French Foreign and European Affairs Minister Catherine Colonna. (Photo by KARIM JAAFAR / AFP)
French Foreign and European Affairs Minister Catherine Colonna. (Photo by KARIM JAAFAR / AFP)
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France Says it Thwarted Attack on Websites from Russian Actors

French Foreign and European Affairs Minister Catherine Colonna. (Photo by KARIM JAAFAR / AFP)
French Foreign and European Affairs Minister Catherine Colonna. (Photo by KARIM JAAFAR / AFP)

France's foreign minister said on Tuesday that Paris had prevented a hybrid digital attack on her ministry's website likely carried out by Russian state-linked actors, along with attacks on other government websites and French media sites.
According to Reuters, Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna also said France believed there was a broader campaign of spreading disinformation in France by Russian protagonists.
"This campaign is notably based upon creating fake internet pages to hack into the identity of national media and government websites, as well as by creating fake accounts on social media networks," Colonna said in a statement.
Moscow has consistently denied that it carries out hacking operations.
Colonna said Russian embassies and Russian cultural institutes were also involved in this campaign, and reaffirmed France's support for Ukraine in its conflict with Russia.
Many countries around the world that have expressed their support for Ukraine have disclosed similar hits on websites.



Kremlin Says New US Base in Poland Is Aimed at ‘Containing’ Russia

Russia, Saint Petersburg: Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov attends a meeting at the Konstantinovsky Palace. Photo: Vladimir Smirnov/Kremlin/dpa
Russia, Saint Petersburg: Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov attends a meeting at the Konstantinovsky Palace. Photo: Vladimir Smirnov/Kremlin/dpa
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Kremlin Says New US Base in Poland Is Aimed at ‘Containing’ Russia

Russia, Saint Petersburg: Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov attends a meeting at the Konstantinovsky Palace. Photo: Vladimir Smirnov/Kremlin/dpa
Russia, Saint Petersburg: Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov attends a meeting at the Konstantinovsky Palace. Photo: Vladimir Smirnov/Kremlin/dpa

The Kremlin said on Wednesday the opening of a new US missile base in Poland was part of an attempt to contain Russia by moving American military infrastructure closer to its borders.

The US base at Redzikowo is part of a broader NATO missile shield dubbed "Aegis Ashore", which the alliance says is capable of intercepting short- to intermediate-range ballistic missiles.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said President Vladimir Putin had objected to plans for the base as far back as the 2000s, when George W. Bush was US president.

He said Putin had insisted at the time the United States was lying when it said the purpose was to intercept potential Iranian missiles.

"This is confirmation that President Putin was right. These plans continue to be implemented. This is the advancement of American military infrastructure on European territory towards our borders," Peskov said.

"This is nothing other than an attempt to contain our military potential and, of course, this leads to the adoption of appropriate measures to ensure parity."

Peskov did not say what measures Russia might take in response.