I have recently become interested in examining the relationship between the US and Russia without the influences of the media. I find it interesting the document concludes there was no direct interference from Russia on the tallying of votes. My understanding after reading this document and having various discussions on the matter is that Russia intended to create unrest among the American people. A few of the other comments on this document mention the involvement of Russia in other country's elections, which I was unaware of. I find this alarming, it makes me question if there is another goal in mind among the Russian government that will come of the election involvement. If there is another goal that would be achieved by gaining knowledge of election processes of other countries, what could that mean for future elections in the US?

Technology has become an important part of international relations itself and it is important to be up to date and anticipatory of new trends and developments. There are new ways now to be vulnerable because of the cybersphere and we need to be diligent when addressing cyber threats as it could pose a threat to our infrastructure. I find it interesting that when technology is discussed in this document it is mentioned that there are some things that cannot be done through technology. We are seeing this in a very real way in our current circumstance. It has become difficult to maintain strong relationships with even our peers which shows very clearly that we cannot rely on technology for some of the most important aspects of maintaining our allies and our presence in the world. This document is from 2017 and to me seems slightly ahead of its time by recognizing that technology has its limitations and there are many things that require face-to-face interaction.