Spies warn U.S. is ‘facing a fragile world order’ in annual report: Intelligence community says Russia wants an arsenal of nuclear space weapons, says China and Iran want to meddle in the 2024 election and lay out their concerns with TikTok

US intelligence agencies warned the country on Monday that it faces threats from an “increasingly fragile world order” as Russia and China try to assert themselves against a backdrop of regional conflict, economic tensions and accelerating artificial intelligence.

“An ambitious but fearful China, a confrontational Russia, some regional powers such as Iran, and more capable non-state actors are challenging the long-standing rules of the international system and American primacy within it,” the agencies said in the annual 2024 report. Threat assessment.

It warns that Russia, Iran and China could act to influence the outcome of the 2024 US election, trying to sideline critics or sow confusion.

According to the report, Beijing has an advantage with TikTok, which is owned by the Chinese company ByteDance.

“China is showing a higher degree of sophistication in its influence activities, including experimenting with generative AI,” the country said.

“TikTok accounts operated by a Chinese propaganda arm reportedly targeted candidates from both political parties during the 2022 U.S. midterm election cycle.”

The video-sharing app, used by around 170 million people, is emerging as a key issue in the 2024 campaign.

President Joe Biden says he would support legislation to ban it, while his likely Republican challenger Donald Trump said he shares national security concerns but the move would only help Facebook, which he continues to criticize for what he sees as its role in his 2020 loss.

But it was identified as just one of several routes foreign powers could use to undermine U.S. security in the assessment conducted by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

And it comes at a time of increasing global fragility, the report said.

Avril Haines, the director of national intelligence, appeared before senators to issue an additional warning that the conflict between Israel and Hamas in Gaza could spread further insecurity.

“The crisis in Gaza is a clear example of how regional developments have the potential for broader and even global implications,” she said.

Haines also urged lawmakers to approve more military aid to Ukraine, saying it is difficult to see how the country could hold on to territory retaken from Russia without more support from Washington.

Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines testifies Monday at a Senate Intelligence Committee on the Annual Worldwide Threats Assessment

Houthi supporters in Yemen. They are one of the examples of how the crisis in Gaza has the potential to disrupt security around the world

The report also explains how Russia’s strengthening of ties with China, Iran and North Korea has presented new challenges for the West as the country continues to seek confrontation.

Recent reports have suggested that it wants to take the arms race into space by deploying a nuclear weapon that would destroy satellites by creating a massive energy surge when detonated.

“Russia continues to train its military space elements and deploy new anti-satellite weapons to disrupt and degrade U.S. and allied space capabilities,” the report said.

“It is expanding its arsenal of jamming systems, directed energy weapons, space-based counter-space capabilities and ground-based (anti-satellite) missiles designed to target U.S. and allied satellites.”