The AfD is just one of several European parties with pro-Russian views. Others include Hungary’s Fidesz, France’s National Rally, Italy’s Lega, and Slovakia’s Smer.
As June’s European elections approach, Russia is stepping up its attempts to influence European opinion and, where possible, infiltrate the bloc’s institutions. A Serbian national linked to the Russian intelligence agency FSB visited the European Parliament last October as part of these efforts, according to a Western intelligence briefing seen by POLITICO.
European sanctions in preparation
Following Czechia’s decision to sanction Voice of Europe, European politicians are working on the idea of an EU-wide sanction against the group – perhaps as part of a 14th EU sanctions package. EU against Russia, Lipavský said, adding that a Czech proposal would be “accompanied by the dossier that provides evidence.
Even if several European diplomats have declared themselves in favor of sanctioning Voice of Europe, no formal proposal to this effect has yet been submitted to national representations. Any capital can propose the extension of national sanctions to the EU level, but the procedures are not public. Issuing an EU-wide sanction can take between two weeks, in exceptional cases, and several months.
“In this cyber war with Russia, we must act as one,” Dita Charanzová, vice-president for cybersecurity at the European Parliament. “It is clearly a bad signal if a member state sanctions an organization for disinformation and we, as the EU, are not able to follow up on it.”
Peter Stano, a spokesman for the European External Action Service, which develops EU-wide sanctions at the request of member states, said such processes are “confidential and not up to us.” not to comment on them or anticipate them publicly.
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