How France managed to counter Russian interference during the presidential election – EURACTIV.com

After the referendum on Brexit and the election of Trump in 2016, the French presidential campaign of 2017 was also affected by Russian interference. However, unlike the United States and the United Kingdom, France has managed to maintain its democratic integrity. Reports EURACTIV.fr

A few hours before the election silence and two days before the first round of the presidential elections, tens of thousands of emails from Emmanuel Macron's campaign team were leaked. Herewith the briefing notes, photos, invoices and among these official documents were counterfeit.

Heather A. Conley, Senior Vice President for Europe, Eurasia and the Arctic at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), believes that France has reacted in the most effective way to counter Russian interference

Strong institutions

Two structures played their role of safeguard in France: the National Commission of control of the electoral campaign for the presidential (CNCCEP), which serves as campaign watchdog and ANSSI

According to Conley, French institutions have better protected the integrity of elections than those in the United States, where "elections are managed at the state level. with the federal control of the financing of the campaign (eg "

" The protection of critical infrastructures (such as electoral systems) is ensured by the Department of Homeland Security but must be developed in cooperation with each State (which can to have different approaches) "[19659002] In France, there is a centralized control organ to ensure integrity.

A leak that turned into a farce [19659002] Another factor is that those who have hacked emails from the Macron team have made several mistakes. Some fake emails were added with the leaked documents but they were so absurd that they were hardly credible. The Macron campaign team reacted by denouncing hacking on social media and turning it into a complete joke. "Fortunately for the Macron campaign, the fact that nothing compromising has been found in e-mails has improved the positive image of Macron's candidate, compared to previous scandals involving another presidential candidate." said Conley.

The schedule of the escape only served to heighten Russia's suspicions of interference. Conley believes that "publishing emails from Macron staff a few hours before the period of election silence was a risk."

The limited period was insufficient to spread the leak and the public could easily believe that it was a hoax (and this feeling was reinforced by the amateur nature of the fake email). In addition, the fact that countries such as the United States or the United Kingdom had previously been affected increased French mistrust.

Macron – only target

The Macron team had also taken precautions to counter the risks of hacking, they favored the use of WhatsApp on Telegram (a Russian application ) to communicate confidential information, and only used email to exchange open information. In addition, French people living abroad have not benefited from electronic voting to reduce the risk of interference.

But why is Russia interfering in the West, especially in a democratic process as fundamental as an election? And why was Emmanuel Macron the only candidate in the French elections to be targeted?

"Russia's active measures are designed to sow discord, exacerbate societal divisions and undermine confidence in democracy Both during the Cold War and now, Russia has used these ancestral tactics to reach parity with liberal democracies If Russia and the West are equal, we can neither criticize nor highlight differences in the rule of law, human rights or civil societies, "said Conley

Boris Toucas, badociate researcher at CSIS and expert on Russia, not in the interest of Russia, said that "if Russia thinks that it can compensate for a perceived lack of influence on "West trying to undermine its democratic institutions, it is making a mistake because it only further complicates its relations with the West."

Toucas said that the so-called Macron leaks did not occur. have never been officiating only attributed to Russia, although President Macron made it clear at a press conference with President Putin that RT and Sputnik were acting as propaganda agents during the campaign. The Front National candidate, Marine Le Pen, called for a "demanding dialogue" with Moscow and was in favor of maintaining European sanctions on the annexation of Crimea.