infovilag.hu, 2025.11.13. Source: EU East StratCom Task Force
The European Union has announced the creation of the European Democracy Shield. The Shield, developed jointly by the European Commission and the European External Action Service, is designed to help strengthen resilient and stable democracies. Under its first pillar — safeguarding the integrity of the information space — the joint communication outlines the EU’s necessary response to the threat of Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference (FIMI). With this initiative, the EU aims to make democracies more resistant to information attacks and malicious attempts at interference.
As EUvsDisinfo demonstrates day after day, the information space has become a geopolitical battleground. Through FIMI campaigns, Russia and other foreign actors seek to destabilize our democracies, manipulate public opinion, and interfere in our elections.
What is FIMI?
A strategic, often covert threat that uses tactics such as disinformation, hacking, and fake news to undermine trust in institutions and destabilise democracies.
Who conducts it?
State or non-state actors seeking political, security-related, or other strategic advantages.
How does it work?
By deliberately and harmfully spreading false or misleading content, sometimes using sophisticated tools such as artificial intelligence to generate fake news or create fake websites.
Why is it a problem?
It can distort public opinion, amplify extremist views, and undermine democratic processes and social cohesion.
Authoritarian regimes are not constrained by the moral and legal boundaries that underpin democracies. They seek to exploit this when engaging in asymmetric power games, spending vast sums on state propaganda and FIMI operations. We, on the other hand, are capable — and obliged — to respond. To counter waves of information manipulation, the EU must strengthen its democratic foundations while building a strong, action-oriented coalition — a global line of defence involving like-minded countries and regional partners.
The First Line of Defence
The European Democracy Shield is considered the first line of defence in this effort. It defines how to strengthen the three fundamental pillars of democratic governance: the integrity of the shared information space; free and fair elections supported by independent media; and societal resilience against all forms of disinformation.
So far, we have made progress mainly in raising awareness and understanding the strategies and tools used by our adversaries. But recognition and threat assessment alone are not enough. We need to reinforce our defences and become proactive: we must use truth as a sword against those deploying manipulative content and tactics. We must expose the true face of FIMI and defeat our adversaries by neutralising their tools.
Joint Action and Raising the Costs
Domestic efforts alone will not suffice. The EU is taking action against FIMI on the global stage as well. Through EU delegations, Common Security and Defence Policy missions and operations, and member states’ diplomatic representations, the EU aims to expand FIMI-related training and provide effective tools to personnel on the ground.
And this is only the beginning. The EU is intensifying anti-FIMI cooperation with candidate and potential candidate countries, with particular focus on the European neighbourhood. We will also deepen cooperation with international organisations such as the G7 Rapid Response Mechanism and NATO. In addition, we will raise the costs of FIMI campaigns — through sanctions and by publicly exposing them.
Signs of Impact
You know you’re on the right track when your opponent starts getting nervous. Unsurprisingly, actors active in FIMI have accused the European Union of authoritarian behaviour and labelled the Shield an Orwellian “Ministry of Truth.” This is a sign that they truly fear it.
Effectively confronting FIMI requires recognising that attacks are not signs of failure but evidence that we have hit the mark. If those seeking to undermine European institutions and values are already trying to belittle the Democracy Shield, they are in fact revealing their fear of what the Shield will do: disrupt and undercut their objectives.
This article was produced with the financial support of the European Union. The views and opinions expressed are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official position of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor the EACEA can be held responsible for them.
https://infovilag.eu/az-europai-demokraciapajzs/
The European Union has announced the creation of the European Democracy Shield. The Shield, developed jointly by the European Commission and the European External Action Service, is designed to help strengthen resilient and stable democracies. Under its first pillar — safeguarding the integrity of the information space — the joint communication outlines the EU’s necessary response to the threat of Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference (FIMI). With this initiative, the EU aims to make democracies more resistant to information attacks and malicious attempts at interference.
As EUvsDisinfo demonstrates day after day, the information space has become a geopolitical battleground. Through FIMI campaigns, Russia and other foreign actors seek to destabilize our democracies, manipulate public opinion, and interfere in our elections.
What is FIMI?
A strategic, often covert threat that uses tactics such as disinformation, hacking, and fake news to undermine trust in institutions and destabilise democracies.
Who conducts it?
State or non-state actors seeking political, security-related, or other strategic advantages.
How does it work?
By deliberately and harmfully spreading false or misleading content, sometimes using sophisticated tools such as artificial intelligence to generate fake news or create fake websites.
Why is it a problem?
It can distort public opinion, amplify extremist views, and undermine democratic processes and social cohesion.
Authoritarian regimes are not constrained by the moral and legal boundaries that underpin democracies. They seek to exploit this when engaging in asymmetric power games, spending vast sums on state propaganda and FIMI operations. We, on the other hand, are capable — and obliged — to respond. To counter waves of information manipulation, the EU must strengthen its democratic foundations while building a strong, action-oriented coalition — a global line of defence involving like-minded countries and regional partners.
The First Line of Defence
The European Democracy Shield is considered the first line of defence in this effort. It defines how to strengthen the three fundamental pillars of democratic governance: the integrity of the shared information space; free and fair elections supported by independent media; and societal resilience against all forms of disinformation.
So far, we have made progress mainly in raising awareness and understanding the strategies and tools used by our adversaries. But recognition and threat assessment alone are not enough. We need to reinforce our defences and become proactive: we must use truth as a sword against those deploying manipulative content and tactics. We must expose the true face of FIMI and defeat our adversaries by neutralising their tools.
Joint Action and Raising the Costs
Domestic efforts alone will not suffice. The EU is taking action against FIMI on the global stage as well. Through EU delegations, Common Security and Defence Policy missions and operations, and member states’ diplomatic representations, the EU aims to expand FIMI-related training and provide effective tools to personnel on the ground.
And this is only the beginning. The EU is intensifying anti-FIMI cooperation with candidate and potential candidate countries, with particular focus on the European neighbourhood. We will also deepen cooperation with international organisations such as the G7 Rapid Response Mechanism and NATO. In addition, we will raise the costs of FIMI campaigns — through sanctions and by publicly exposing them.
Signs of Impact
You know you’re on the right track when your opponent starts getting nervous. Unsurprisingly, actors active in FIMI have accused the European Union of authoritarian behaviour and labelled the Shield an Orwellian “Ministry of Truth.” This is a sign that they truly fear it.
Effectively confronting FIMI requires recognising that attacks are not signs of failure but evidence that we have hit the mark. If those seeking to undermine European institutions and values are already trying to belittle the Democracy Shield, they are in fact revealing their fear of what the Shield will do: disrupt and undercut their objectives.
This article was produced with the financial support of the European Union. The views and opinions expressed are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official position of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor the EACEA can be held responsible for them.
https://infovilag.eu/az-europai-demokraciapajzs/
