The British government accused the Russian intelligence agency (FSB) on Thursday of trying to “interfere” in Britain’s political and democratic processes through cyber espionage operations.

In a statement, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs blamed the KGB’s successor organization for several things leaks of confidential information since 2015 with the aim of disrupting British political stability.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has summoned the Russian Ambassador in London, Andrei Kevin, to convey this “deep concern” due to “repeated attempts” Russia avoids cybernetic interference in British and other countries’ politics.

London believes that the FSB unit, Center 18, is responsible for the cyber espionage operation, carried out by the Star Blizzard group, which for British intelligence falls under the unit.

Therefore, it has been announced sanctions against two Russian citizens for their involvement in Star Blizzard (also known as Callisto Group, Coldriver or Seaborgium): FSB agent Ruslan Aleksandrovich Peretyatko and group member Andrey Stanislovich Korinets.

According to the British Government, the FSB directs its activities against British politicians, officials, journalists and NGOs.

“While some attacks resulted in the leak of documents, attempts to interfere in British politics and democracy were unsuccessful,” Foreign Affairs noted.

The British government has linked the FSB to cyber attacks on politicians across the parliamentary spectrum since 2015 and to the hacking of trade documents between Britain and the United States that were leaked before the 2019 general election.

He also suspects he was involved in the hacking of the think tank Institute for Statecraft and its founder, Christopher Donnelly, which fights disinformation, as well as other NGOs and journalists.

The aim has always been “to filter and amplify information in line with Russia’s confrontational aims, including undermining trust in politics in the UK and other similar countries.”

MP Stewart McDonald, of the Scottish National Party (SNP), had claimed in February that a group allegedly linked to Russian Intelligence had stolen his emails after posing as his colleagues, in an attempt to prevent possible leaks by making them public.

European Foreign Minister Leo Docherty said today in Parliament that Russia “compromised” the private conversations of high-level politicians with its operatives, but its attempts to intervene were unsuccessful.

The UK, along with the United States, Australia, New Zealand and Canada, will today publish security guidance to strengthen protections against Russian cyber espionage, especially for individuals most at risk.

“By sanctioning those responsible and recalling the Russian ambassador today, we are exposing their nefarious efforts to influence and providing another example of how Russia chooses to operate on the global stage.”said Foreign Minister David Cameron.

The head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs classified the attempted interference as “completely unacceptable” and considered that “these actions seek to threaten our democratic processes.

Russian intelligence is a frequent suspect in other high-profile cyberattacks, such as the theft of emails from former US presidential candidate Hillary Clinton’s team.

(with information from EFE and EP)