President Nikos Christodoulides warned on Thursday that hybrid threats such as cyberattacks, drone incidents, disinformation and foreign interference are becoming more frequent and are starting to be treated as normal.
“We cannot allow these threats to become the new normal,” he told a session on ‘The security and defence of a democratic Europe’ at the ninth European Political Community summit in Dublin. He said such incidents, once considered rare, were now becoming part of everyday life, for European countries and beyond.
Christodoulides said the response must be comprehensive, coordinated and based on principles, and that governments must do more to inform and protect citizens. With the rapid development of artificial intelligence, he said, raising public awareness and strengthening society’s resilience were the first line of defence, something Cyprus was actively pursuing.
He called on the EU to strengthen its oversight of digital platforms and technology companies, saying greater transparency, accountability and effective safeguards against the malicious use of artificial intelligence were essential to protect democratic societies.
He also said Europe should make full and effective use of its collective tools, including mechanisms against hybrid threats, cyber diplomacy and foreign information manipulation, as well as targeted sanctions against those responsible.
Defending Europe, he concluded, was not only about protecting borders and critical infrastructure, but also citizens, democratic institutions and the trust on which societies are built.
