The Diplomat
The High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, recognized yesterday in Madrid that foreign interference poses a threat in electoral processes in Europe.
In statements to journalists, after presenting the leader of the PSOE in Madrid, Juan Lobato, at an informative breakfast, Josep Borrell admitted the danger of the actions of other countries in the electoral processes in Europe and recalled that, for this reason, the Action Service Outside the EU has a program to fight against this foreign interference and the misinformation that is produced on the occasion of the holding of elections at the European level.
“Foreign interference in elections is one of the serious problems that democracy has in Europe and in the world,” said the High Representative, who added that there are “some countries that do it on an industrial scale.” He stated that, before the European elections next June “we will have to be very vigilant so that what already happened in the last elections is not repeated.”
Borrell insisted that “interference and disinformation in the democratic process is something that we have to monitor because there are many foreign agents that interfere in our processes, sowing disinformation.”
However, he specified that with those words he is not referring to the specific case of the links between the Catalan independence movement and Russia, after yesterday the European Parliament will make the decision to order an investigation into the contacts between the former president of Catalonia Carles Puigdemont. and people close to the Kremlin.
When asked, specifically, if he shares that decision, the head of European diplomacy avoided giving a direct answer and limited himself to pointing out that if the MEPs voted that way, “they will have their reasons.” “I don’t know any more than Parliament knows,” he said.
