EEAS, 11 member states stand up to Russia's attempts to influence information space

  • 2025-01-23
  • BNS/TBT Staff

TALLINN – The European External Action Service (EEAS) announced on Thursday that it denounces, together with the Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania and Sweden, Russia's continued and systematic attempts to manipulate and interfere in the information space of democratic societies.

"Foreign information manipulation and interference is a fundamental part of Russian military activities. It aims at creating distrust, sparking domestic divisions, and influencing democratic decision-making. We have to fight it. The best way to counter such malign activities remains the same: expose them, provide facts and the truth and support independent press," Kaja Kallas, the high representative for foreign affairs and security policy and vice-president of the European Commission, said in a press release.

Russian state and pro-Kremlin affiliated actors are coordinating to conduct foreign information manipulation and interference (FIMI) attacks. These operations are carried out through Russian diplomatic network and security services, state-controlled media, social media channels, private companies and local proxies, used in an integrated manner to multiply and amplify each other.

On Dec. 16, 2024, the European Union imposed restrictive measures on two additional individuals behind the "Doppelganger" campaign, under a new framework for restrictive measures in response to Russia's hybrid activities and destabilizing actions abroad. The "Doppelganger" campaign, first uncovered by EU Disinfo Lab in September 2022 , is a favored FIMI tactic by the Kremlin, which impersonates reputable media outlets or personas seeking to deceive the public to consume its propaganda.

"The EU and its member states, our international partners and civil society organizations collaborate closely to expose and counter FIMI operations such as the 'Doppelganger' campaign. This includes sharing effective measures and experiences in the application of national and EU legal instruments through the Rapid Alert System, conducting scientific research, and educating diverse groups of society about Russian tactics, techniques and procedures (TTPs). We do this to protect the integrity of our open information space and strengthen the resilience of our democracies," the EEAS said.

"We remain vigilant and aware that this campaign, and others like it, are part of Russia's long-standing, persistent and systematic efforts to undermine international support for Ukraine and stoke divisions within the EU and with its partners across the world. We stand united with Ukraine and democratic forces globally in our commitment to counter this threat, in full respect and compliance with human rights and fundamental freedoms, making full use of the instruments and means at our disposal," the press release said. 

Priit Talv, the head of the strategic communication unit at Estonia's Government Office, said the threat of information manipulation originating from Russia should certainly not be underestimated, but Estonia is well-prepared to defend itself against such attacks.

"The National Defense Development Plan defines strategic communication as one of the five broad directions for the development of national defense, and increasing the resilience of Estonian society to informational influence activities is one of our main focus areas," Talv said.

As a neighbor of Russia, Estonia has always been on the frontline of the Kremlin's information war and has therefore had to learn to cope with daily information manipulation.

"We are happy to share our experience with our good partners in the European Union and beyond," Talv added.