The European External Action Service, or the European Union’s diplomatic service, has pioneered development of the concept of Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference (FIMI).
FIMI aims to meld two adjacent threats – information operations and foreign interference – into a joint concept that can be tackled holistically. This makes sense given that disinformation is often used in foreign interference operations as an effective tool.
Other countries around the world could consider exploring concepts and frameworks such as FIMI in order to establish a common understanding and language that would enable more effective cross-border collaboration to tackle such threat.
As countries like Singapore, Canada and Australia gear up to go to the polls this year, citizens will need to arm themselves with the knowledge, information and awareness that will enable them to resist influence by foreign powers in their voting behaviour, and interference in our electoral processes.
One thing is clear: The threat of foreign interference represents a clear and present danger that all nations and their citizens need to be cognisant of. We all need to do our part to be ready to counter it.
Nicholas Fang is director for security and global affairs at independent think tank, the Singapore Institute of International Affairs. He is a former nominated member of parliament and founder and managing director of market research consultancy Black Dot Research which runs a leading independent fact-checking platform.
