The European Union is founded on principles and values such as human dignity, freedom, equality, solidarity, and respect for human rights, but also the respect of democracy and the rule of law. Foreign and malicious intervention aims at deceiving citizens by suppressing or distorting information, sowing distrust by polarising and dividing societies, and discrediting democracy, in order to destabilise the European Union.[1]
For this reason, in June 2020 the European Union[2] created a Special Committee on Foreign Interference in all Democratic Processes in the European Union, including Disinformation (INGE)[3],[4], to analyse how foreign countries act towards democracies, and develop a strategy to prevent, detect, attribute, counter, and sanction these threats.
During their eighteen months of work, the Special Committee held over 50 meetings with more than 130 experts to better study the impact of foreign intervention. They analysed the financing of anti-choice organisations (a joint hearing with FEMM, the Committee on Female Rights and Gender Equality)[5], the breaches in the electoral rules through political financing[6],[7], and the misuse of social media[8],[9],[10], to name a few examples. INGE also studied in-depth how countries such as Russia[11] and Turkey[12], China, Iran, India, UAE, and Saudi Arabia[13] act in regard to destabilising the EU. Finally, INGE delegations went on mission to Taiwan[14], the USA[15], and Greece[16], to learn and develop new strategies on how to approach foreign intervention. The mandate of INGE finished in March 2022, and the day after a new Special Committee, ING2, was set up to further investigate on the topic, with a special focus on the disinformation about the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine started on 24 February 2022.[17]
References
[1] Europarl.europa.eu. 2022. Texts adopted – Setting up a special committee on foreign interference in all democratic processes in the European Union, including disinformation – Thursday, 10 March 2022. [online] Available at: <https://www.europarl.europa.eu/doceo/document/TA-9-2022-0070_EN.html> [Accessed 17 October 2022].
[2] Oeil.secure.europarl.europa.eu. 2022. Foreign interference in all democratic processes in the European Union, including disinformation. [online] Available at: <https://oeil.secure.europarl.europa.eu/oeil/popups/ficheprocedure.do?lang=en&reference=2020/2268(INI)> [Accessed 17 October 2022].
[3] Europarl.europa.eu. 2022. Welcome to INGE by Chair Raphaël Glucksmann. [online] Available at: <https://www.europarl.europa.eu/committees/en/inge/about> [Accessed 17 October 2022].
[4] Europarl.europa.eu. 2022. Special Committee on Foreign Interference in all Democratic Processes in the European Union, including Disinformation. [online] Available at: <https://www.europarl.europa.eu/committees/en/inge/home/highlights> [Accessed 17 October 2022].
[5] Europarl.europa.eu. 2022. Joint FEMM-INGE Public Hearing on “Financing of anti-choice organisations”. [online] Available at: <https://www.europarl.europa.eu/committees/en/joint-femm-inge-public-hearing-on-financ/product-details/20210315CHE08502> [Accessed 17 October 2022].
[6] Europarl.europa.eu. 2022. Breaches of electoral rules and political financing; use of social media platforms | Hearings | Events | INGE | Committees | European Parliament. [online] Available at: <https://www.europarl.europa.eu/committees/en/breaches-of-electoral-rules-and-politica/product-details/20210205CHE08241> [Accessed 17 October 2022].
[7] Europarl.europa.eu. 2022. Foreign interference during electoral processes | Hearings | Events | INGE | Committees | European Parliament. [online] Available at: <https://www.europarl.europa.eu/committees/en/foreign-interference-during-electoral-pr/product-details/20210309CHE08462> [Accessed 17 October 2022].
[8] Europarl.europa.eu. 2022. Social media platforms, online disinformation and fact-checking. [online] Available at: <https://www.europarl.europa.eu/committees/en/social-media-platforms-online-disinforma/product-details/20210210CHE08283> [Accessed 17 October 2022].
[9] Europarl.europa.eu. 2022. Hearing on: “Democracy Online: what are the risks? How to protect us?”. [online] Available at: <https://www.europarl.europa.eu/committees/en/hearing-on-democracy-online-what-are-the/product-details/20210312CHE08482> [Accessed 17 October 2022].
[10] Europarl.europa.eu. 2022. Education, media and culture in addressing disinformation and foreign interference. [online] Available at: <https://www.europarl.europa.eu/committees/en/education-media-and-culture-in-addressin/product-details/20210907CHE09262> [Accessed 17 October 2022].
[11] Europarl.europa.eu. 2022. Foreign interference from the Kremlin – Mikhail Khodorkovsky guest in INGE. [online] Available at: <https://www.europarl.europa.eu/committees/en/foreign-interference-from-the-kremlin-mi/product-details/20210506CHE08801> [Accessed 17 October 2022].
[12] Europarl.europa.eu. 2022. Hearing on foreign interference: Turkey and Russia. [online] Available at: <https://www.europarl.europa.eu/committees/en/hearing-on-foreign-interference-turkey-a/product-details/20210210CHE08284> [Accessed 17 October 2022].
[13] Europarl.europa.eu. 2022. Hearing on foreign interference: China, Iran, India and Saudi Arabia and UAE. [online] Available at: <https://www.europarl.europa.eu/committees/en/hearing-on-foreign-interference-china-ir/product-details/20210204CHE08222> [Accessed 17 October 2022].
[14] Europarl.europa.eu. 2022. INGE mission to Taiwan. [online] Available at: <https://www.europarl.europa.eu/committees/en/inge-mission-to-taiwan/product-details/20221007CHE10702> [Accessed 17 October 2022].
[15] Europarl.europa.eu. 2022. Mission to Washington D.C.. [online] Available at: <https://www.europarl.europa.eu/committees/en/mission-to-washington-d.c./product-details/20220401CHE10044> [Accessed 17 October 2022].
[16] Europarl.europa.eu. 2022. Mission to Athens. [online] Available at: <https://www.europarl.europa.eu/committees/en/mission-to-athens/product-details/20210922CHE09322> [Accessed 17 October 2022].
[17] Europarl.europa.eu. 2022. Texts adopted – Setting up a special committee on foreign interference in all democratic processes in the European Union, including disinformation – Thursday, 10 March 2022. [online] Available at: <https://www.europarl.europa.eu/doceo/document/TA-9-2022-0070_EN.html> [Accessed 17 October 2022].
Written by Matteo Risso
He holds a bachelor’s degree in Translation and Interpreting from the Università degli Studi di Trieste. Now he is a trainee in the Pre-Translation Unit of the European Parliament.