Deputy Minister Sterk: Disinformation and fake news are a threat to the European elections
09 April 2019 News
Deputy Foreign Minister Yuri Sterk took part in a conference on ‘The threat of foreign interference in the elections for European parliament’, organized by the European Council on Foreign Relations at Europe House.
In his speech Minister Sterk shared his concern about the challenges facing European societies on the eve of the European Parliament elections. Among these he pointed out disinformation, fake news, the hybrid threats and national populism.
‘We live in times rife with challenges and threats. One of the key components of our European identity, the democratic nature of the EU member states, is under immense pressure. It is being put in doubt and under attack, which erodes the democratic legitimacy of the forms of government in Europe and the EU as a whole,’ said the Deputy Foreign Minister.
He drew attention to the fact that as a result of foreign influence, there is a growing tendency for national-populist sentiments to pervade a significant portion of European societies. Targeted influences put forward arguments showing the national interest as opposed to the pan-European.
‘To a large extent this kind of influence comes from targeted information campaigns, from disseminating false information in the social networks and mass media. The upcoming elections will largely be a test for the extent to which the EU and the societies of the member states have the immunity to resist that challenge to the very democratic identity of our societies.’ Yuri Sterk added.
He went on to stress, however, that whenever the EU has been faced with grave challenges, it has emerged stronger as a result of that. The Deputy Minister underscored that at governmental level, Bulgaria had in place a designated unit for combating disinformation under the guidance of Deputy Prime Minister Tomislav Donchev. He pointed out that the threat of a hybrid intervention in the process of the European elections is a challenge for the entire country, its government and its civil society.
Ex-President Rossen Plevneliev (2012-2017), who also took part in the discussion, underscored that the EU has the power and the means to deal with the hybrid threat. ‘The European Union is capable of regulating cyberspace, to impose control and guarantee the protection of personal data for the benefit of its citizens, ’Plevneliev said.
The discussion was moderated by Vesela Cherneva, the deputy director of the ECFR and head of that NGO’s Sofia office.
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