US ends cooperation with Europe on countering disinformation from Russia, China and Iran – FT

The Financial Times has stated that the United States has informed European countries that it is withdrawing from joint efforts to combat disinformation coming from Russia, China and Iran.

Source: The Financial Times (FT), citing its sources

Details: The FT reported that European countries had received a notice from the State Department last week saying that the US is terminating memoranda of understanding signed in 2024 under former President Joe Biden. These agreements were intended to create a unified approach to identifying and exposing harmful information from those countries.

The memoranda were part of an initiative led by the Global Engagement Center (GEC), a State Department agency tasked with countering disinformation spread abroad by US adversaries and terrorist groups.

James Rubin, who headed the centre until December, described the move as a "unilateral act of disarmament" in the information war against Russia and China.

Quote from Rubin: "Information warfare is a reality of our time and artificial intelligence is only going to multiply the risks from that."

Details: Rubin estimated that around 22 countries in Europe and Africa had signed agreements with the US over the past year. These were part of the Biden administration's programme to counter foreign state manipulation, which aimed to build a shared understanding of the threat and work with partner countries on a coordinated response.

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