The challenge is to move from a reactive approach to anticipation and prevention of hybrid threats, Deputy Minister for European Affairs, Marilena Raouna, said on Wednesday, speaking at the Plenary Session of the European Parliament (EP), in Strasbourg.
According to a press release issued by the Secretariat of the Presidency of the EU Council, speaking on protecting EU citizen’s data from hybrid threats, Raouna pointed out that “the rapidly increasing number of serious and sophisticated cyber-attacks cause is greatly concerning our citizens and our industries.”
“In today’s environment of hybrid threats and escalating cybercrime, Member States stand stronger together – and that is precisely why we have built a strong and coordinated system to reinforce our cybersecurity as a core pillar of our democracies, but also of the resilience of the Single Market,” she noted.
“We have in recent years developed a solid legislative cyber framework, and we are working to strengthen it further,” Raouna said, while welcoming the Commission proposal for a new cybersecurity package, which is currently under discussion in the Council.
She further pointed out that “the Council supports a strengthened role of ENISA, the EU agency for cybersecurity, to support operational cooperation in enhancing cyber resilience at the EU level and also among Member States.”
“We all recognise that today’s security environment is not only defined by cyberattacks, but by broader hybrid threats by malign actors,” the Deputy Minister said, adding that “these threats are increasingly sophisticated, combining cyber operations, foreign information manipulation and interference, economic coercion, sabotage, and other tactics.”
“While the primary responsibility for cybersecurity and countering hybrid threats remains with the Member States – as a matter of national security – the Council has developed a comprehensive Framework for a Coordinated EU Response to Hybrid Campaigns, as well as the EU Cyber Diplomacy Toolbox, to increase the EU’s ability to prevent, discourage, deter and respond to malicious cyber activity,” Raouna emphasised.
“This includes Hybrid Rapid Response Teams, which can be deployed upon request to support the member states and foreign partner countries in countering hybrid threats,” she added.
“The framework is supported by the European External Action Service (EEAS) which provides a centralised analytical capacity to detect and assess hybrid activity,” the Deputy Minister noted.
She also recalled that in March, the Council adopted conclusions on advancing the EU’s capacity to counter hybrid threats, reaffirming our determination to use all available tools.
Also, the European Democracy Shield initiative, together with the European Centre for Democratic Resilience, further reinforces our collective efforts, she added.
“The challenge is to move from a reactive approach to anticipation and prevention,” Raouna pointed out, while assuring that “the EU is constantly strengthening its ability to support Member States in detecting, deterring, and disrupting hybrid campaigns before they can fully materialise.”