The former president of Estonia predicted Thursday that Europe will be the "main battlefield" for Russian disinformation campaigns to influence Western elections this year.
Toomas Hendrik Ilves, Estonia's president from 2006 to 2016, testified before the House Foreign Affairs committee that the Kremlin's recent attempts to target European elections appear aimed at splitting up the European Union and NATO alliances.
"Certainly the candidates who are being supported are ones who are anti-EU and anti-NATO. The most prominent, of course, in the key country of France, is Marine Le Pen," Ilves said, referring to the leader of France's far-right National Front.
Le Pen is a sharp critic of NATO and has called for France to follow in the footsteps of the United Kingdom by exiting the EU.
Le Pen's National Front came under scrutiny in 2014 after it accepted a $9.8 million loan from the First Czech-Russian Bank, which was indirectly tied to the Kremlin before it dissolved. The loan led to accusations that Moscow was backing Le Pen's candidacy. U.S. Rep. Mike Turner (R., Ohio) issued a letter to former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper in December requesting that American intelligence agencies probe potential links between Le Pen and Russian officials.
France's Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault warned Russia in February against interfering in the nation's presidential election and threatened retaliation. Ayrault's declaration arrived after centrist French presidential candidate Emmanuel Macron said his party was the victim of a Russian disinformation campaign and cyber attacks. The Kremlin has denied the accusations.
A special task force set up by the EU accused Russia in January of attempting to influence several crucial elections in Europe, including in France, Germany, and the Netherlands, through the dissemination of fake news. Ilves testified that Italy also is at risk of Russian meddling during snap elections expected to be held this summer.
Ilves, noting the election fraud accusations levied against Russian President Vladimir Putin after his 2012 reelection, said Europe is at a disadvantage against Moscow given the "complete asymmetry" of the recent attacks.
"We can't do to them what they do to us, meaning us in the West," Ilves said. "Ultimately, if you're the ones counting the votes in an authoritarian one-party state, you're not going to influence the election."