Today, the European Union published the Declaration by the High Representative on behalf of the European Union on respect for the EU’s democratic processes. The declaration condemns harmful activities in cyberspace carried out by the Russian Federation against the EU member states and urges Russia to put an immediate stop to them.
The harmful activities of the Russian Federation referred to in the EU Declaration have already been taking place for a few years now and have generally been known as the Ghostwriter campaign. These attacks have been targeted at members of parliaments, representatives of central and local governments, politicians, or people representing non-governmental organisations and the media, as well as private citizens. The aim of the campaign is to undermine trust in the democratic procedures and institutions, polarise and antagonise different political and social groups, and cause disagreement among the EU member states. 

The attacks by Russia have been targeted at Poland and other member states of the EU. The responsibility for carrying out the campaign has been attributed in the first place to the Russian special services, even though there may be more actors and implementers (including those coming from the outside of, but collaborating with, the Russian Federation). In June, Poland requested that the EU use its cyber diplomacy tools. Germany addressed a similar request in early September. These steps have resulted in the EU Declaration published today, emphasising that the cyberattacks and disinformation campaigns orchestrated by Russia constitute a serious threat to EU’s security and unity, to European values, democratic processes and institutions. The European Union and its member states condemn emphatically those harmful activities in cyberspace and call upon all entities responsible for such activities to cease them immediately. They urge Russia directly to adhere to international standards and declare that the case will be further analysed in terms of additional steps to be taken in that regard. 

MFA Press Office