EU to counter Russian propaganda by promoting 'European values'

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/jun/25/eu-russia-propaganda-ukraine

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The European Union aims to counter Russian propaganda by boosting support for independent media in “eastern neighbourhood” countries and increasing awareness of “disinformation activities by external actors”, according to a strategic communications action plan seen by RFE/RL.

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The document, drafted by the EU’s diplomatic corps, also calls for efforts to persuade people in countries such as Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova of the benefits of European-style reforms.

The plan was prepared ahead of the EU summit in Brussels and offers a strategy to provide alternatives sources of information to outlets such as Russia’s state-funded RT television, amid an increasingly polarised media environment sparked by the war in Ukraine.

A communications unit called the East StratCom Team, launched in April, will support EU delegations in the six eastern neighbourhood countries, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine – as well as in Russia itself.

The main objectives include communicating and promoting “EU policies and values”, supporting independent media and increasing awareness of “disinformation activities by external actors”.

The document states that communication towards the east should “first and foremost focus on the development of positive and effective messages regarding EU policies towards the region”.

Brussels needs to spread the message that reforms promoted by the European Union “can, over time, have a positive impact on their daily lives,” the action plan says. It stresses that the strategy should highlight the benefits, not the bureaucracy, focusing on clearly explaining the positive effects of EU programmes and policies rather than going into details about the policies.

Tensions between Europe and Russia have exacerbated since Ukraine’s former president Viktor Yanukovych was ousted following months of protests sparked by his decision to scrap plans to move closer to the EU and improve trade ties with Moscow instead. Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine in March 2014 and has backed separatists fighting with government forces in the east.

The action plan also calls for the 28-nation EU to more actively to promote freedom of the media in the “eastern neighbourhood” region, mainly in concert with the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe and the Council of Europe. Proposals include targeted training and “capacity building” for journalists and media outlets in the region. Brussels will also “consider how best it can support training for journalists experiencing conflict situations, to better enable them to report on issues of relevance to local populations.”

Several potential responses to Russian propaganda have been discussed among EU member states, including an initiative led by countries such as Denmark and Latvia to create a Russian-language TV channel.

The action plan does not mention the creation of new media outlets in Russian, but it notes that a “number of Member States are already increasing their support for broadcasting in the Russian language to cater to national minorities. In the meantime the EU will continue its support at local level for independent media, including Russian language media, to ensure that citizens have access to alternative sources of information in their local language.”

It also states that “the EU will ensure that communication materials and products are available in local languages, notably in Russian”.

A version of this article first appeared on RFE/RL