Moscow and Washington could sign a pact vowing to not interfere in each other’s elections and other internal affairs, Russia’s President Vladimir Putin suggested Friday.
In his statement, Putin called for the two countries to “exchange guarantees of non-interference in each others’ domestic affairs including elections.”
He also called for a global pact agreeing not to use such methods to deal “the first blow” in conflicts.
“One of today’s major strategic challenges is the risk of a large-scale confrontation in the digital field,” the Russian leader said as quoted by i24news.com.
He also suggested that Moscow and Washington strike a deal to prevent cyberspace incidents, comparing that to a 1972 Soviet-American agreement to reduce the possibility of an incident at sea or in the air and an escalation in tensions.
Putin made a specific reference to the use of “information and communication technologies” to this end, with Russia frequently accused of using state-backed hackers and “trolls” to secure its interests via cyberspace.
