Secretary of State Rex Tillerson says the Russians are already attempting to interfere in the midterm elections — much like they did with the presidential race in 2016.
“We are seeing certain behaviors,” Tillerson explained during an interview with Fox News on Tuesday.
“There’s a lot of ways that the Russians can meddle in the elections,” he said. “A lot of different tools they can use.”
Tillerson, who is currently on a six-day tour of Latin America, admitted that the US may not be able to stop the Russians from interfering, despite our best efforts.
“I don’t know that I would say we are better prepared, because the Russians will adapt as well,” he said. “The point is, if it’s their intention to interfere, they are going to find ways to do that. We can take steps we can take but this is something that, once they decide they are going to do it, it’s very difficult to preempt it.”
Tillerson told Fox that the US was working with “allies” and “partners” from around the world in order to keep track of the Russian meddling.
“There are a number of important elections in this hemisphere this year, leading up [to the US midterms],” the secretary noted. “I think it’s important we just continue to say to Russia, ‘Look, you think we don’t see what you’re doing. We do see it and you need to stop. If you don’t, you’re going to just continue to invite consequences for yourself.'”