Trump Administration Suspends Offensive Cyber Operations Against Moscow- wna24

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered U.S. Cyber Command to suspend offensive cyber and information operations against Russia, according to multiple reports. 

Officials told The Washington Post that the suspension is meant to last only while negotiations to end the Russia-Ukraine war are ongoing. Experts acknowledge that such pauses during diplomatic talks are not uncommon. 

The Pentagon declined to comment on the reports, citing security concerns. “Due to operational security concerns, we do not comment nor discuss cyber intelligence, plans, or operations,” a senior defense official told Axios. “There is no greater priority to Secretary Hegseth than the safety of the Warfighter in all operations, to include the cyber domain.”

Despite the pause, parts of the U.S. intelligence community continue to view Russia’s cyber capabilities as a threat. The 2024 national threat assessment concluded that Moscow uses cyber operations as a “foreign policy lever” to influence global affairs.

Even as Russia focuses on its war in Ukraine, the report warns that it still has the ability to carry out significant cyberattacks against U.S. and global infrastructure. It is unclear right now if the new administration agrees with the report. As the 2024 assessment was conducted during the Biden administration, which had an antagonistic relationship with Russia, it is quite likely that the Trump administration doesn’t agree with the report’s findings. 

The U.S. has previously taken a more aggressive cyber stance against Russia. In 2021, U.S. cyber experts were deployed to Ukraine to help defend against Russian cyberattacks in the lead-up to the invasion. Officials at the time credited those operations with weakening Moscow’s digital warfare efforts.

However, it appears that the new administration, has reached the conclusion that China is a bigger challenge to the US, and to meet this challenge, Washington needs to mend its ties with Russia. 

National Security Adviser Mike Waltz addressed the reports on CNN’s State of the Union on Sunday, stating that pausing cyber operations had not been a formal part of discussions between the Trump administration and Moscow. However, he acknowledged that “there will be all kinds of carrots and sticks to get this war to an end.”

The decision to halt cyber operations adds to a growing list of foreign policy decisions the Trump administration has taken to mend its ties with Russia. The US President is slated to address a joint session of the Congress tomorrow.