In a significant assessment centering on foreign involvement, a top intelligence official has revealed that Iran is gearing up to wreak havoc in the US presidential election, while Russia is backing Donald Trump. With Trump openly accusing China of hiding details about the coronavirus, in addition to making other serious allegations, it is hardly surprising that China wants Joe Biden to be elected as America's next president.

This statement by the director of the National Counterintelligence and Security Center William Evanina indicates there could be a repeat of the 2016 election when Russia influenced social media to promote Trump and damage the reputation of his opponent Hillary Clinton. The statement implies Russia is adopting multiple methods to defame Biden and what it considers to be an anti-Russia ‘establishment.

Moreover, the statement points out that the people of Moscow have criticized Biden when he was vice president for influencing the Obama Administration’s policies on Ukraine and its backing for anti-Putin opposition within Russia. Evanina identified a pro-Russia Ukrainian politician Andriy Derkach as spreading rumors about corruption, resorting to publicizing leaked phone calls to damage Biden's campaign.

Derkach has met with Trump's personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, who has publicized conspiracy theories involving Biden, according to The Washington Post. Aside from that, Evanina revealed that some Kremlin-linked actors were promoting lies about corruption to defame the former vice president, while others were leaving no stone unturned in their bid to boost Trump's candidacy through social media and Russian television.

Moreover, Evanina, the top intelligence official keeping an eye on threats to the election was appointed by Trump. While his statement places China before Russia, it lacks shreds of evidence of Beijing's interference. The assessment suggests Beijing does not want Trump to win re-election as it considers him to be unpredictable.

Keeping in line with that, the statement suggests China is trying to influence the outcome of the upcoming election and shape the policy environment in America. On top of that, the statement accuses China of pressurizing political figures it thinks are against China’s interests, and cover up and respond to the backlash it is receiving for the coronavirus pandemic.

He added that Beijing realizes that it can influence the presidential race with all these efforts. The statement also highlighted China's accusations of Trump mishandling the pandemic, the closure of China's consulate in America, and the White House responses to the Chinese government's actions in the South China Sea and Hong Kong.