The EU and NATO Working Together

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PREZENTARE CARTE

The Russian Federation’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 confirmed that information warfare is inseparable from conventional military aggression. The war has been fought not only on the battlefield, but also through competing narratives about responsibility, legitimacy, sovereignty, peace, fatigue, escalation, and sacrifice. Russian and pro-Russian disinformation has sought to portray Ukraine as doomed, the West as divided, NATO as provocative, the European Union as hypocritical, and sanctions as self-destructive. At the same time, disinformation campaigns have targeted electoral processes, public health debates, energy security, migration, environmental policies, cultural identities, and trust in democratic institutions. The battlefield of the twenty-first century is therefore not limited to territory; it extends into the cognitive and emotional space of societies. The war on disinformation will not be won by a single policy, regulation, institution, or campaign. It requires persistence, cooperation, intellectual honesty, and democratic confidence. It requires the ability to recognise hostile manipulation without dismissing legitimate criticism, to defend truth without imposing uniformity, and to strengthen security without weakening freedom. We hope that this volume contributes to that effort and encourages further research, dialogue, and cooperation at a moment when the resilience of European democracies is being tested with renewed intensity.

The Editors