Some Hacked E-Mails, Documents From Putin Advisor Confirmed as Genuine
A Kremlin spokesperson denied the legitimacy of the e-mails, saying that Surkov did not have an e-mail address. However, the account appears to have been used by Surkov’s assistants, and the dump contains e-mails with reports from Surkov’s assistants. The breach, if ultimately proven genuine, would appear to be the first major publicized hack of a Russian political figure. And in that instance, perhaps this could be a response to the hacking of US political figures attributed to Russia.
The e-mails appear to show that Vladislav Surkov, a former deputy prime minister and currently a personal advisor to Putin, directly worked to undermine the political stability of Ukraine. Surkov, generally credited as the architect of Russia’s current political system and known by some as the “Grey Cardinal” of the Kremlin, is known to be in charge of managing relations with the Donetsk separatists. He also supervises things with South Ossetia and Abkhazia—two breakaway regions of Georgia recognized and aided by Russia.
Most of the e-mails are routine. However, a separate leak by the hackers includes a report that outlines a plan for undermining the stability of the Ukrainian government entitled “The plan of priority measures to destabilize the socio-political situation in Ukraine:
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