China, Russia and Iran Attempts To Impact US Presidential Election 2020
Washington: China, Russia and Iran are among countries seeking to influence the US presidential election this year, a top US intelligence chief has warned.
A statement issued by the director of US counterintelligence said foreign states were using "covert and overt influence measures" to sway the vote.
It said China did not want President Donald Trump's re-election while Russia wanted to hurt Democrat Joe Biden.
Intelligence chiefs accuse Russia of interfering in the 2016 election.
They say Russia wanted to help boost Mr Trump's campaign, including by spreading disinformation online. Russia has denied the allegations.
Asked at a press conference what he planned to do about the report on election interference, President Trump said his administration would look "very closely" into it.
The announcement comes amid claims by Mr Trump about the dangers of mail-in or postal ballots. He has suggested that the vote be delayed to prevent "the most inaccurate and fraudulent election in history", prompting a backlash even among members of his own party.
It also follows complaints by Democratic lawmakers that US intelligence agencies are not releasing information to the public about foreign interference in this year's vote.
The Republican president Mr Trump is seeking to win a second term in office. His challenger is Democratic candidate and former vice president Joe Biden.
William Evanina, head of the National Counterintelligence and Security Center (NCSC), released the statement on Friday.
Foreign countries are trying to sway voter preferences, change US policies, "increase discord" in the country "and undermine the American people's confidence in our democratic process", Mr Evanina said.
The counterintelligence chief however added that it would be "difficult for our adversaries to interfere with or manipulate voting results at scale."
Many countries "have a preference for who wins the election", he said, but the counterintelligence director said they were primarily concerned about China, Russia and Iran.
