US disbands Foreign Influence Task Force combating Russian, Chinese influence

Newly appointed Attorney General Pam Bondi has announced that the US Department of Justice dissolved the Foreign Influence Task Force.

It was created in 2017 to investigate attempts by state actors like Russia and China to manipulate US public opinion, particularly regarding elections, Caliber.Az reports via foreign media.

President Trump has consistently criticised law enforcement's efforts to identify and eliminate foreign interference in US elections, especially following the 2019 report from special counsel Robert Mueller, which revealed substantial evidence of Russian influence operations aimed at benefiting Trump's campaign during the 2016 presidential election.

In her memo, Bondi wrote, "To free resources to address more pressing priorities, and end risks of further weaponization and abuses of prosecutorial discretion, the Foreign Influence Task Force shall be disbanded." 

Among those disbanded were two teams focused on targeting kleptocrats—public figures who exploit their power to steal from their own citizens. The Kleptocracy Asset Recovery Initiative, created in 2010, was responsible for identifying, seizing, and returning stolen assets to the countries from which they were taken. 

Task Force KleptoCapture, established in early 2022 following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, focused on oligarchs with close ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin and enforced sanctions imposed by the US and its allies in response to the invasion.

By Naila Huseynova