BRUSSELS, April 18: EU leaders on Wednesday weighed a response to suspicions of Russian meddling ahead of June elections in the bloc, with several states pushing for sanctions targeting “malign activities” by Moscow.
Brussels has issued escalating warnings about Russia sowing disinformation ahead of the polls, and seeking to weaken Western support for Ukraine as it fights off Moscow’s invasion.
The issue reared its head dramatically in recent weeks after Czech intelligence uncovered evidence EU lawmakers took money to spread Kremlin propaganda through a Prague-based news site allegations now under investigation in Belgium, which hosts the EU’s top institutions.
European Council President Charles Michel, speaking after day one of a summit in Brussels, said EU leaders had addressed the threat of Russian interference and agreed to join forces to counter it.
“We need to be much more vigilant, we need to cooperate much more and show Russia that we are not naive.
“We need to bring together the tools we have, the European institutions on the one hand, but also the national authorities on the other,” he told reporters.
The prime ministers of Belgium and the Czech Republic, Alexander De Croo and Petr Fiala, had appealed to fellow leaders to consider new sanctions to counter Russian “malign activities.”
In their draft summit conclusions, EU leaders alluded to the threat, vowing to “closely monitor and contain” risks, including “foreign information manipulation and interference in electoral processes.”
De Croo also said the Belgian EU presidency and the European Parliament would set up a joint task force to track developments and liaise with national authorities.
But with Russia-friendly leaders in the room, Hungary’s Viktor Orban and Slovakia’s Robert Fico there appeared little chance EU leaders would go much further in the politically charged lead-up to June’s European elections. – TVS
