How Obama Prepared a 'Cyber Bomb' Attack Against Russia

On Friday, The Washington Post reported that the Barack Obama administration had discussed ways of punishing Russia for alleged interference in last year's presidential election, which included cyber warfare.

According to the report, Obama had approved a measure that authorized planting cyber bombs in Russia's infrastructure, which could be detonated if the United States found itself in an escalating conflict with Moscow.

The measure was still in the planning stages when Obama left office and it would be up to President Trump to decide whether to use the capability.

"The Hardest Thing to Defend"

According to The Washington Post, Obama did not want to make any decisive steps against Russia before the outcome of the election. Among other things he did not want to play into the hands of Donald Trump who constantly said that the results of the voting would be falsified.

In addition, Obama noted there was not enough evidence of Moscow's alleged involvement in the voting. Moscow in turn repeatedly denied all allegations, saying that they are absurd and represent an attempt to divert public attention from revealed instances of election fraud and corruption, as well as other pressing domestic issues.

The newspaper also noted that no serious violations have been registered during the voting, and only its outcome was shocking.

A former senior Obama administration official involved in the organization of a "cyber bomb plan" against Russia recalled this period with remorse.

"It is the hardest thing about my entire time in government to defend," he told the newspaper. "I feel like we sort of choked."

"The Punishment Didn't Fit the Crime"

However, former US ambassador in Moscow, Michael McFaul, on the contrary, believes that Washington didn't take sufficient measures to prevent Russia from "interfering" in US affairs in the future.

"The punishment did not fit the crime," McFaul said, cited by the newspaper.

"Russia violated our sovereignty, meddling in one of our most sacred acts as a democracy — electing our president. The Kremlin should have paid a much higher price for that attack. And U.S. policymakers now — both in the White House and Congress — should consider new actions to deter future Russian interventions," he noted.

"Internal Political Struggle"

In its turn, the Kremlin has repeatedly denied allegations of cyberattacks on the electoral system of the United States. In an interview with US film director Oliver Stone, Russian leader Vladimir Putin stressed that Russia or any other country is incapable of influencing presidential election in the US.

According to the Russian leader, such accusations against Moscow are "an instrument of internal political struggle."

According to a recent poll, 32 percent of US residents also believe that the investigation of "Trump's connections with Russia" is aimed at diverting public attention from more important issues.