India and more than 35 specialists from the European Union (EU) will collaborate in New Delhi on Wednesday, February 21st, to explore the security and policy dimensions of online falsehoods and information manipulation, while identifying potential areas of EU-India cooperation.Professionals will discuss foreign policy reactions to falsehoods in both regions, showcase advancements in the EU’s and India’s efforts to disrupt harmful actors, and examine the role of community groups in tackling online falsehoods and strengthening resilience.
Happening alongside the Raisina Dialogue 2024, the EU-India track 1.5 event “Fighting falsehoods online: EU and Indian views” is the fourth roundtable jointly organized by the EU-funded project Enhancing Security Cooperation in and With Asia (ESIWA) and the Indian Observer Research Foundation (ORF) in conjunction with the EU Delegation to India. The peer-to-peer conversation will analyse patterns in online falsehood usage and urge EU and Indian governmental and non-governmental entities to exchange insights and share effective strategies for countering falsehoods.
Consistent with the #TeamEurope strategy, the high-level assembly will include speakers from various EU entities such as the European External Action Service, German Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs, French Embassy in New Delhi, and the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs. From the Indian side, representatives from organizations like the India’s National Cyber Coordination Centre, and the National Security Council Secretariat of India will be involved.
“In the physical realm, Europe may appear distant from Asia, but in cyberspace, we coexist, sometimes in a complicated, hazardous cyber environment where our societies rely on resilient, trustworthy digital services and where we can all fall prey to malicious cyber-attacks. We must confront such challenges with collective defense and robust, dependable cooperation,” stated Deputy Head of the Delegation of the European Union to India Seppo Nurmi, who will deliver the introductory remarks at the roundtable.
“Participants from both regions will offer insights into their respective strategies for combating falsehoods with a particular emphasis on upholding free speech and privacy. The track 1.5 dialogue will deliberate on the EU’s and India’s foreign policy reactions to online falsehoods while identifying avenues for EU-India collaboration,” Nurmi added.
The EU and India have repeatedly affirmed their dedication to an open, free, secure, stable, peaceful, and accessible cyberspace that fosters economic growth and innovation. To further foster collaboration, ESIWA and ORF have jointly hosted a series of track 1.5 dialogues between the EU and India in the form of high-level meetings. The initial three meetings took place in April 2022, October 2022, and March 2023 in New Delhi alongside the CyFy and Raisina dialogues. The conclusions drawn from these meetings contribute to the formal EU–India Cybersecurity Dialogues, advancing discussions on evolving security challenges and forging connections between two major global security players.
“Online falsehoods and information manipulation pose a growing political and security dilemma. Considering the adverse effects it can have on two of the world’s largest democracies, this ESIWA-ORF roundtable comes at a timely juncture to enhance EU-India collaboration in cybersecurity,” remarked Mindaugas Lasas, Head of Sector – Hybrid Threats at the European External Action Service, one of the speakers at the event.