European Union officials on Tuesday defended the 27-nation bloc decision to ban Russian state-controlled companies media broadcasting outlets in the region as decisive steps to check a “information war.”
Speaking in the European Parliament during a debate on foreign interference and disinformation, top EU diplomat Josep Borrell brushed aside off critics who say the block menace freedom of information with the ban on Sputnik and RT.
“They are not independent mediathey are assetsthey are weapons, in the Kremlin manipulation ecosystem,” Borrell told lawmakers. “We’re not trying to decide what’s true and what false. We don’t have ministers of the truth. But we have to focus on foreign actors who intentionally, in in a coordinated way, try to manipulate our information environment.”
The EU has decided to suspend dissemination activities of Sputnik and RT in the block until Russia ends its war in Ukraine and stop disinformation campaigns in Member States.
Borrell said the points sales outlets controlled by Moscow were part of of well-oiled propaganda machine biased news on Russian President Vladimir Putin true intentions.
“If the information is baddemocracy is bad”, he said, adding that information should to be protected good. “If the information is systematically tainted with lies and twisted, citizens cannot have clear agreement of reality and their political judgment is also twisted.”
Borrell insisted that Sputnik was created by presidential decree with the goal of reports on Russian state policies abroad, and said that RT is capable of lead a “information war” against west world. Borrell said he would soon propose a new mechanism that will allow the EU to sanction the actors of disinformation. The legislators of special Committee on foreign interference and disinformation are also propose to establish a sanctions regime to make face with foreign interference.
“I’m going to suggest a new mechanism that will allow us to sanction these maligned disinformation actors,” Borrell said, adding that he was not trying to define what was true Where false in newsbut to protect against the manipulation of companies.
Latvian EU legislator Sandra Kalniete, the author of the report says it is crucial for the EU to counter foreign threats in an offer to prevent others countries harm democracies.
” Lets go call a cat a cat. Russia, China and other authoritarian regimes have channeled more over 300 millions dollars in 33 countries interfere in democratic processes,” she said. “Putin’s propaganda machinery was not just switched on on February 24. He has already I worked in Europe for decades, trying to poison and divide our societies.
Kaniete said online platforms and tech companies need suspend everything social committed accounts in “to deny, glorify and justify Putin’s aggression, war crimes and crimes against humanity.”
She also proposes to strengthen content in Russians and Ukrainians to resist the pressure of Russian disinformation.
“In short, any tech giving platform space to Putin’s propaganda or conform with his demand for censorship is complicit in Putin’s aggression,” she said.
European Commission Vice-President Vera Jourova said Putin wanted son people to be “apathetic” and praised the Netflix streaming platform decision suspend its Russian services.
“Because President Putin wants people having fun, not paying attention to what’s going on,” she said. “It would not be fair to see the Russians having fun, and next carries Ukrainians killed.”
Both Borrell and Jourova have expressed deep concerns about the imposed censorship in Russia which menace independent journalists with jail terms and deprives citizens of access to be checked information on what their government made in Ukraine.
“He is more important than ever to reach Russian people and provide them with information”, Jourova said. “Every possible channel should to be used.”
