The US Senate is considering penalties on Russia in response to alleged cyber-attacks on Ukraine

*Paromita Das

According to Politico, the US Senate Foreign Affairs Committee is considering imposing penalties on Russia for alleged cyber-attacks against Ukraine, as part of a long-running debate in Congress over the Defending Ukraine Sovereignty Act of 2022.

According to Politico, the US Senate believes Russia is responsible for many cyber-attacks against Ukraine, including the hacking of almost 70 Ukrainian official websites last month. Retaliatory actions against Moscow for cyber-attacks on Ukraine are currently on the table, according to Senate Foreign Relations Chair Bob Menendez.

According to Politico, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Chris Murphy, said, “If there were pre-invasion sanctions, they would be linked to Russian cyber-attacks inside Ukraine.”

Meanwhile, senators’ positions differed, with some arguing that cyber-attacks sanctions should be included in the Defending Ukraine Sovereignty Act of 2022, which includes sanctions against Russia in the event of an incursion into Ukraine, while others argue that new sanctions should be imposed regardless of an invasion.

The White House proposed the Defending Ukraine Sovereignty Act of 2022 to Congress in mid-January, and it is presently being debated in the US Senate.

The bill authorises the United States to offer military support to Ukraine in the event of suspected Russian aggression, as well as deterrence actions against Russian politicians, financial institutions, and economic activity. Russia’s Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline project could be targeted as well.

Tensions around Ukraine have risen in recent weeks, with the United States and the European Union expressing worry about Russia’s military build-up near the Ukrainian border, and NATO encouraging members to increase military support for Kiev. So far, the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Poland, and the Baltic states have supplied Ukraine with multiple batches of arms, primarily handguns, ammo, and anti-tank weapons, with Washington sending additional forces to Poland and Romania.

Russia, for its part, has repeatedly rejected any intention of invading any country, while claiming that NATO’s military presence near its borders endangers its national security and obstructs a peaceful resolution in Ukraine’s Donbas.