On Monday 18 July, the Council of the EU invited the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, and the European Commission to present options for measures that could be taken against actors of foreign information manipulation and interference (FIMI) when this is necessary to protect EU public order and security. This must be done “in full respect of human rights and fundamental freedoms”, the EU Council conclusions state.
It also recalls the need to create an EU hybrid toolbox that brings together different instruments to detect and respond to a wide range of hybrid threats and campaigns and, in this context, will develop a dedicated toolbox to deal with FIMI.
“We agreed to start working on a toolbox that could allow us to impose costs on those who try to undermine our democracies, institutions and processes through disinformation”, the High Representative announced after the Foreign Affairs Council.
In its conclusions, the EU Council also calls for enhanced cooperation with like-minded partners, such as NATO, the G7, as well as civil society and the private sector, and for increased efforts within the UN framework.
See the conclusions: https://aeur.eu/f/2oo (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)