The special counsel’s office on Friday in court defended the government’s conspiracy case against three Russian firms and 13 individuals accused of carrying out a plot to sow discord in the 2016 presidential election.

The tactics used in the alleged conspiracy were intended to skirt the U.S. regulatory scheme that targets foreign influence in the electoral process, Michael Dreeben, a deputy U.S. solicitor general who’s on detail to the special counsel, said at a hearing in Washington’s federal trial court.