“How the democratic West should stop Putin”

organized by the European Values Think-Tank

Source: President of Russia

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About The Prague Declaration

The Prague Declaration presents seven urgent steps that Western liberal-democratic states must undertake to halt Russian aggression. Thus far, the response to this threat has been weak due to the enduring failure of a significant contingent of the Western political establishment to understand the Kremlin’s hostile intentions.

More than 65 European and American security experts and parliamentarians from 21 countries have signed this public call, which urges Western leaders such as EU High Representative Federica Mogherini to openly name Russia as the chief source of hostile disinformation and to take practical steps in mitigating this threat, for example by tripling the capacity of the EEAS East STRATCOM Team.

The signatories of this Declaration represent all major sectors of the Western political and security establishment: they include, among others, a Vice President of the European Parliament, a chief architect of the Magnitsky Act, the former Director of Government Communications for the Office of Finland’s Prime Minister, and the former President of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. The signatories also include the leaders of major think tanks: among others, the Brookings Institution, American Enterprise Institute, the UK Royal United Services Institute for Defence and Security Studies, the Polish Institute of International Affairs, the Estonian International Centre for Defence and Security, the French Center for Study and Research on Political Decision, GLOBSEC Policy Institute, European Values Think-Tank, the Political Capital Policy Research and Consulting Institute, and the Latvian National Defence Academy.

The Declaration

The bellicose actions of the Russian Federation are unprecedented in post-Cold War history. Under the leadership of Vladimir Putin, Russia is responsible for the first annexation of territory by force in Europe since World War II, constant violations of other countries’ borders and airspace, the kidnapping of foreign citizens, unrivalled use of disinformation, the bribing of politicians, the provision of direct financial and logistical support to extremist and paramilitary groups, hostile interference in democratic elections, and consistent cyber-attacks. Most egregious of all is Russia’s culpability in the deaths of more than 10,000 Ukrainians fighting to defend their country against Russian invasion.

However, despite these atrocities and Moscow’s unapologetic truculence, the response on part of Western democracies has been mostly anaemic. Indeed, many Western voices continue to advocate appeasement of the Kremlin, for example on grounds of maintaining cooperation in the fight against terrorism, despite all evidence indicating that Russia has no interest in genuine cooperation on this front. In many countries, there is a prevailing desire to continue ‘business as usual’ with Russia, despite the thousands killed by Putin’s war in Ukraine and despite the danger that such acquiescence poses to the safety of our democracies.

Let us be clear: Vladimir Putin is leading a campaign of harassment and intimidation against the liberal-democratic West and those wishing to join it. While much of the Western political establishment stands idly by, the Russian leadership is playing ‘divide and conquer’ across the Euro-Atlantic region, targeting different countries with sticks or carrots based on their relations with Moscow. While some countries face coercion and intimidation tactics, others are lured by promises of favourable energy or trade deals if they adopt more anti-Western and anti-democratic positions. Across the board, however, our countries are under attack by a combination of espionage, corruption, organized crime, and relentless, multi-faceted disinformation campaigns aimed at fracturing our societies from within.

While the United States is currently investigating Russian penetration of its most sacrosanct democratic institution – the federal election process – no such investigation of the Kremlin’s hostile influence has been initiated in Europe, despite numerous cases of blatant Russian meddling, namely in the Dutch and Italian referendums, Brexit, the French and German elections, and, most recently, the Catalan referendum. In all of these cases, Russian involvement has been aimed at undermining the democratic process and fuelling chaos, polarization, and discord within society. NATO and the EU are the Kremlin’s primary targets in this endeavour; the break-up of the transatlantic alliance is Vladimir Putin’s ultimate geopolitical objective. Yet for all this, the counterstrategies of both NATO and the EU remain troublingly inadequate, indicating a broad institutional failure to understand and grasp the urgency of the threat.

Accordingly, the signatories of this Declaration call upon Western leaders to undertake the following seven steps to counter Russian aggression and secure the stability and vigour of liberal democratic societies:

STEP 1: POLITICAL LEADERS MUST ACKNOWLEDGE THE THREAT

Vladimir Putin’s Russia poses a major threat to Western democracies. The Kremlin’s use of subversive tools and tactics to exercise hostile influence over the internal affairs of democratic countries is unacceptable and must be countered with resolute defensive actions to deter further aggression. So far, such substantial countermeasures are non-existent. If Moscow remains undeterred, additional sanctions targeting members of the Russian elite’s inner circle should be imposed to increase pressure on the leadership. Currently, the lack of punitive measures is an invitation for the Kremlin to continue or potentially ramp up its offensive.

STEP 2: INVESTIGATE AND EXPOSE HOSTILE ACTIVITIES IN THE NATIONAL CONTEXT

Beyond the ongoing stream of anti-Western disinformation narratives stemming from Russia, the Kremlin also employs temporary, intense campaigns to influence national elections and referenda in Western countries. In this context, national parliaments should form investigative panels to collect and publicise evidence of Moscow’s disinformation and influence operations. Transparency is the best tool that democracies have at their disposal: thus, full disclosure of Russia’s subversive efforts is the most effective – and also legitimate – way to inform the public about this threat.

STEP 3: RESEARCH WHERE RUSSIA SUCCEEDS

EU member states should jointly conduct targeted research (e.g., through detailed polling) to obtain data about which demographic groups typically believe the Kremlin’s disinformation narratives. Only such comparative and in-depth exercises can expose the reach of Moscow’s efforts to sway public opinion.

STEP 4: EMPOWER THE ONLY EXPERT BODY ON THE EU LEVEL

The EEAS East STRATCOM Task Force, established by EU leaders two years ago to counter Russian disinformation campaigns, remains gravely understaffed, with only three national experts focusing on the crucial task of Europe’s defence against Russian hostile influence. These three experts – who are paid by their home states rather than by the EEAS – alone cannot fulfil the tasks set forth by the European Council. Accordingly, the EEAS should triple the capacity of the Task Force so that it has the resources to fulfil its mandate. Indeed, given the extant staff size and budget of the EEAS, it is reasonable to request the addition of at least seven additional experts who would be paid from the EEAS budget. The EEAS East STRATCOM Task Force has established itself as a highly specialised expert pillar in Europe and is widely respected within Western intelligence and security circles. This unit should therefore be transformed from a temporary assignment into a permanent EEAS structure and receive at least one million Euros for targeted research. Similar allied structures exist to coordinate messaging vis-à-vis ISIS; a similar structure should now be put in place to counter pro-Kremlin disinformation.

STEP 5: CONFRONT THE AGGRESSOR POLITICALLY

Despite the gravity of the threat, few Western political leaders have openly identified the Kremlin as the aggressor. For example, Federica Mogherini, the EU High Representative for Foreign and Security Policy, has spent the last two years endeavouring to avoid naming Russia as the primary source of hostile disinformation within the EU. Crucially, if Europe wants to defeat this threat, its leaders must confront it head on: the Russian leadership must hear European representatives declare that its subversive efforts will not be tolerated.

STEP 6: SET UP A WORKING GROUP OF LIKE-MINDED EU AND NATO MEMBER STATES

Although at least twelve EU member states consider Russian hostile influence to be a serious threat, they have so far failed to work effectively as a coalition. However, this threat can only be defeated through collective action: as such, these countries must set up mechanisms such as cross-border working groups to develop and implement concrete countermeasures (e.g., message coordination).

STEP 7: ENCOURAGE UNDERSTANDING OUTSIDE THE SPECIALIST COMMUNITY

Thus far, information-sharing between EU member states has been sparse. Central and Eastern European governments and civil society groups must actively deliver lessons learnt from their experiences of countering Moscow’s hostile influence operations to Western European countries, where the understanding of this threat is comparatively limited. Moreover, while an expert community on Russian influence and disinformation operations is emerging in Europe and the United States, it is essential to deliver rudimentary knowledge about threat assessment, the Kremlin’s and its proxies’ modus operandi, and viable policy options to people beyond the specialist community. In-depth training programmes and briefings for non-specialists in government and the wider political establishment, as well as in the media and non-profit sector, are greatly needed.

List of signatories:

Ackerman Galia , PhD, Chief of the Russian Bureau of Politique Internationale (review), France

Agov Yordan, Vice-Chairman of Democrats for a Strong Bulgaria in Sofia

Altau Karl, Joint Baltic American National Committee, Inc. (JBANC)

Anda Burve – Rozite, Journalist, irir.lv

Andrei Kovalev, PhD History, Author of Russia’s Dead End: An Insider’s Testimony from Gorbachev to Putin

Andrikienė Laima Liucija, Member of the European Parliament, Lithuania

Aro Jessikka, Investigative journalist, Finland

Assenov Plamen, independеnt bulgarian journalist and writer, author of many political analyses of the treaty from Russia

Bahovski Erkki, The ICDS, the editor of Diplomaatia

Baublys Artūras, Art2B, Public Establishment, Director

Berzins Janis, Director at the Center for Security and Strategic Research, National Defence Academy, Latvia

Berzins Valdis, Latvijas Avize daily, foreign news editor

Blank Senior Stephen, Fellow, American Foreign Policy Council, USA

Boháček Petr, Director, European Security Journal, Czech Republic

Boyadzhiev Georgi, Scale Focus AD, Bulgaria

Browder Bill, Chief Executive Officer & Co-founder of the investment fund Hermitage Capital, UK

Buziashvili Eto, Programs Director, Georgian Strategic Analysis Center, Georgia

Coynash Halya, Kharkiv Human Rights Group, Ukraine

Čelutka Simas, Director of European Security Programme, Vilnius Institute for Policy Analysis, Lithuania

Čižik Tomáš, Director, Centre for European and North Atlantic Affairs, Slovakia

D’Urso Dario , Director, EuropeNext

Dal Re Maurizio , Cyber Security Expert, Italy

Dalia Bankauskaite, Media Program Director, Vilnius Institute of Policy Analysis

Dalziel Stephen, Senior Fellow, The Institute for Statecraft

Dębski Sławomir, Director, The Polish Institute of International Affairs, Poland

Emek Patrick, Author, Analyst & Blogger, Fellow (Retired) Atlantic Council

Engelen Kurt, Euro Atlantic Association of Belgium, Vice president

Evgenidze Nino, Economic Policy Research Center – Executive Director

Eyal Jonathan, Associate Director, Royal United Services Institute for Defence and Security Studies, UK

Fedchenko Yevhen, Co-founder, StopFake.org, Ukraine

Fleischer Pawel, President & CEO of the Institute for Forecasting and International Studies

Foley John, US Army, LTC, (Retired)

Fota Iulian, former national security adviser to the President of Romania, signing in personal capacity, Romania

Freudenstein Roland, Policy Director, Wilfried Martens Centre for European Studies, Belgium

Furmonavicius Darius, Lithuanian Research Centre, UK

Gaprindashvili Paata, Director, Georgia´s Reforms Associates, Georgia

Garmash Anna, President, Ukraine Action, Ukraine

Gedmin Jeffrey, Senior Fellow, Georgetown University, former President of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, USA

Gerber Simon, President of swiss-ukraine.org, Switzerland

Gonchar Mykhailo, President, Centre for Global Studies ‘Strategy XXI’, Ukraine

Gonchar Mykhailo, President, Centre for Global Studies ‘Strategy XXI’, Ukraine

Grant Glen, Member Reform Office MOD Ukraine

Gressel Gustav C., PhD, Senior Policy Fellow, Wider Europe Programme, European Council on Foreign Relations

Grigoryan Stepan, Chairman of the Board, Analytical Centre on Globalization and Regional Cooperation, Armenia

Gvineria Shota, Deputy Secretary, National Security Council, Georgia

Gyori Lorant, analyst, Political Capital Institute, Hungary

Haigh Maria, Associate professor, University of Wisconsin

Christoph Müller, BigBand of the German Armed Forces, StaffSergeant

Ivanov Plamen, Atlantic Council of Bulgaria

Jakóbik Wojciech, Energy analyst, Poland

Kamiński Krzysztof, President, Warsaw Institute, Poland

Kasciunas, Laurynas, Member of Parliament, Lithuania

Kasparov Garry , human rights activist, Russia

Kelam Tunne, European Parliament, Member from Estonia

Keršanskas Vytautas, Deputy director, Eastern Europe Studies Centre

Kestutis Eidukonis J., World Lithuanian Community/Lithuanian Parliament Commission member, Lithuania

Khylko Maksym, Co-founder, Chairman of the Board, East European Security Research Initiative Foundation, Ukraine

Kintsurashvili Tamar, Media Development Foundation, Georgia

Kirchick James, Visiting Fellow, Brookings Institution, USA

Kobosko Michal, Director, Poland Office, Atlantic Council, Poland

Kolář Petr, former Deputy Foreign Minister and four-time Ambassador, Czech Republic

Kolga Marcus, Senior Fellow, MacDonald-Laurier Institute Centre for Advancing Canada’s Interests Abroad

Kovacevic Milica, Center for Democratic Transition, Montenegro, President

Kreko Peter, Director, Political Capital Institute, Hungary

Kross Eerik-Niiles, Former Intelligence Chief, current Member of Parliament, Estonia

Kudors Andis, Executive Director, Centre for East European Policy Studies, Latvia

Kwasiborski Matthew, European Institutes Director

Lavreniuk Andrii, UKRINFORM’s Staff Correspondent in Belgium, Ukraine

Lednik Ihar, Civic online initiative “Europe without dictatorships!”

Loskutovs, Aleksejs, Member of Parliament, Latvia

Lozowy Ivan, Movement to Fight Corruption, Chairman of the Board

Magdin Radu, international analyst, former prime ministerial advisor in Romania, Romania

Malakov Petko, Soldier BG ARMY

Malinionis Vaidotas, National Defense Foundation, Lithuania

Maliukevicius Nerijus, researcher, IIRPS, Vilnius University, Lithuania

Manolov Nikolay, Dobson|DaVanzo LLC, Senior Scientist

Mantila Markku, former Director of Government Communications at Prime Ministers Office,

Marin Danu, Foreign Policy Association of Moldova

McKew Molly , information operations expert, USA

Mesik Juraj, civic activist, Slovakia

Mezřický Václav, emeriti docent Faculty of Law Charles University Prague

Milic Jelena, Director, Center for Euro-Atlantic Studies, Serbia

Miliute Rita, Journalist, Lithuania

Milo Daniel, Head of STRATCOM Initiative, GLOBSEC Policy Institute, Slovakia

Moser Michael, University of Vienna (Austria), Professor

Naď Jaroslav, Director, Slovak Security Studies Institute, Slovakia

Naydenov Mihail, Defense and International Security expert, Atlantic Council of Bulgaria

Nicolini Mario, Founder & Honorary President, Euro-Atlantic Center, Slovakia

Niland Paul, Founder, Statement Email, Ukraine

Novak Andrej Ferdinand, European Cosmopolitan Consulting, Senior Consultant

Novotný Vít, Wilfried Martens Centre for European Studies, Senior Research Officer

O’Connell Evan, Senior Associate, Aspect Consulting, France

Panyi Szabolcs, journalist, Index.hu and VSquare.org, Hungary

Pedersen Kim Bjarne, Writer and human rights activist, Denmark

Pelczynska-Nalecz KATARZYNA, Stefan Batory Foundation

Philippe de Lara, Assistant professor of political science at Paris 2 university (Paris)

Poche Miroslav, MEP, Czech Republic

Popescu Liliana, SNSPA University, Bucharest

Porchkhidze Irakli, Vice-president, Georgian Institute for Strategic Studies, Georgia

Potekhin Dmytro, Nonviolent.Solutions, Ukraine

Potiekhin Principal Oleksandr, researcher, Institute of World History, National Academy of Sciences, Ukraine

Przybylski Wojciech, Visegrad Insight, Res Publica

Rebecca Harms, Member of European Parliament

Reichardt Adam, Editor-in-Chief, New Eastern Europe, Poland

Rey Marcin, Blogger, Rosyjska V Kolumna w Polsce, Poland

Rimantas Kraujalis, Chairman of the Council, Vilnius University, Lithuania

Roháč Dalibor, Research Fellow, American Enterprise Institute, USA

Rusev Dimitar, Ministry of Defence of Bulgaria, Chief Expert

Sakalauskas Giedrius, Direktor, Res Publika, Lithuania

Samadashvili Salome, MP, Parliament of Georgia, Deputy Chair, Committee on Foreign Relations

Sanchez Elisa, Autonoma

Saryusz-Wolski Jacek, MEP, Poland

Seely Robert , MBE MP, Member of Parliament, Isle of Wight

Shymko Lisa, President, Ukraine Support Fund (Canada & Ukraine)

Schindler John, former NSA analyst, USA

Smolar Eugeniusz, – Senior Fellow, Centre for International Relations, Poland

Spolitis Veiko, Parliament dof the Republic of Latvia / MP

Stollmeyer Alice, Founder & Director, Defending Democracy, Belgium

Suprun Marko, Patriot Defence NGO, Acting Director

Szigetvári Viktor, Head of the Party Parliament, Együtt (Together) Party

Szymańska – Klich Anna, Foundation Institute for Strategic Studies, Chairman of the Board

Szyszko Jan, Polityka Insight, European Affairs Analyst

Štětina Jaromír , MEP, Vice-Chair of Subcommittee on Security and Defence

Tabliashvili Irakli, Politics.ge – web page. VOICE FROM GEORGIA. DIRECTOR

Tatham Steve, Director Influence Options Ltd, Associate Fellow Strategy & Security Institute, University of Exeter, UK

Telička Pavel , MEP, Vice-President of the European Parliament, Czech Republic

Tenzer Nicolas, Chairman of Center for Study and Research on Political Decision, Guest Professor at Sciences Po Paris, France

Teperik Dmitri, Chief Executive, International Centre for Defense and Security, Estonia

Toque Mehedao Jesús, Secretary, Unión Europea y Política Geoestratética

Tretyak Leon, SBS Radio, Sydney. Producer.

Troebst Stefan, Leipzig University, Germany

Tudor Radu, Political and Military Analyst, Antena 3 TV, Romania

Umland Andreas, Institute for Euro-Atlantic Cooperation, Kyiv

VaidereInese, Member of the European Parliament, Latvia

Valcárcel Siso Ramón Luis, Vice-President of the European Parliament

Vasiloi Rosian, signing in personal capacity, security studies expert, former Deputy Head of the Border Police Department, Republic of Moldova

Vassilev Ilian, Former Ambassador of Bulgara to Russia – 2000-2006

Végh Edvárd, chairman, Democrats Party (Hungary)

Vichev Dimitrin, Atlantic Council of Bulgaria – Co-president & CEO

Vilu Raivo, Professor, Tallinn University of Technology, Estonia

Viola von Cramon-Taubadel, Former MP, German Parliament

Vogel Nathalie, independent analyst, Germany

Wetzel Iryna, Board Member of swiss-ukraine.org, Switzerland

Wićaz Stanij, European Values Think Tank, Intern

Wierzejski Antoni, Analyst, Centre for International Relations, Poland

Wyciszkiewicz Ernest, director, Centre for Polish-Russian Dialogue and Understanding, Poland

Yordanov Alexander, Chairman of the 36th National Assembly of Republic of Bulgaria

Young Thomas, Editor-in-Chief, Defence & Security Analysis

Zala Boris, MEP, Slovakia

Zelienkova Kristyna, former Czech MP, author of the report Political consequences of the Russian aggression in Ukraine

Coordinator of this Declaration

Jakub Janda

Head of the Kremlin Watch Program

janda@evropskehodnoty.cz

Sign the Prague Declaration

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