EU service faces backlash over withdrawal from Vilnius disinformation event
Canada and Lithuania also sought to remove their logos after US pressure. The EU diplomatic service said parts of the programme conflicted with EU positions.
Lawmakers and civil society representatives have criticised the European External Action Service (EEAS) for ending its support for a Vilnius conference on disinformation after pressure from Washington. The service sought to have its logo taken off conference materials shortly before the event opened.
Christian Wigand, the EU's lead spokesperson for foreign affairs, said organisers had presented certain discussions in terms incompatible with EU positions. The EEAS would not specify the sessions it objected to. Following pressure from the US State Department, Lithuania and Canada separately requested the removal of their logos.
The NGO EU DisinfoLab organised the gathering. One panel examines the US as a threat in the field of foreign information manipulation and interference, known as FIMI, with two researchers and former CIA official Alex Finley participating. A March report by the EEAS named Russia and China as hostile actors carrying out these operations in Europe; it made no mention of the US.
Italian MEP Brando Benifei said the withdrawal warranted a full explanation. Nathalie Loiseau, the French MEP chairing the special committee on the Democracy Shield, argued that countering interference should not depend on which country was responsible. Critics said dropping support undermined the European Democracy Shield, which is intended to shield journalists and civil society from government pressure and foreign interference.
Swedish MEP Tomas Tobé offered a contrasting position. He regretted that the US felt the EU viewed it as a FIMI actor and said European efforts should concentrate on threats from Russia and other hostile actors.
