The Kremlin’s aggressive campaign against Ukraine is characteristic of a carefully planned strategy that gradually has shifted from a hybrid warfare to a de facto whole-scale invasion. Disinformation is an important instrument through which the Kremlin seeks to consolidate its influence in the Black Sea region and advance its geopolitical agenda. Russian disinformation narratives weaponise fear to target communities and decision-making institutions by exploiting a wide variety of topics, including issues related to chemical, biological, and nuclear weapons – collectively known as weapons of mass destruction. Such narratives prey on pre-existing societal vulnerabilities and grievances and pro-Kremlin groups and networks of influence play an active role in amplifying the spread of disinformation messaging.
Enhancing resilience against Kremlin’s malign interference in the Black Sea region requires a multi-layered approach encompassing measures and tactics to combat disinformation activities on multiple fronts and across different domains. Cross-border cooperation, building partnerships, and experience sharing are essential instruments for detecting and exposing disinformation campaigns and fostering creativity against information manipulation. This involves empowering local actors in public and private sector to detect and disrupt disinformation activities by promoting good governance initiatives, combating media capture, strengthening local institutional capacity, improving media literacy, and leveraging technology solutions to identify and track malign activity in cyberspace.
These are some of the highlights of the international conference on Countering WMD Hybrid Threats and Malign Interference in the Black Sea Region that took place on 28 November 2023. The event was organised by the Center for the Study of Democracy in partnership with New Strategy Center, Romania and the US Department of State. The event was attended by Kenneth Merten, US Ambassador to Bulgaria and Todor Tagarev, Minister of Defence of Bulgaria. The discussion featured leading experts in the field of international security and counter-disinformation, including Sarah Gamberini, Senior Policy Fellow, National Defense University, USA; Bozhidar Bozhanov, Chair of the Committee on e-Government and Information Technology, National Assembly, Bulgaria; Dr Alina Bârgăoanu, Dean of College of Communication and Public Relations, Romania; and Camilla Chapman, Programme Director, ZincNetwork, UK.
