EU denies US pressure behind withdrawal from disinformation conference

Media reports this week suggested that Washington had objected to a panel discussion at an EU-sponsored conference in Vilnius, Lithuania, that framed the United States as a potential disinformation threat. © AFP - SEBASTIEN BOZON

The European Union has denied that pressure from the United States prompted it to withdraw its logo from a major conference on disinformation in Lithuania, insisting that the decision was instead linked to the way organisers had drawn up the programme.

The EU’s diplomatic service, the European External Action Service (EEAS), had been a sponsor of Disinfo2026, organised by an independent Brussels non-profit. The conference opened in Vilnius on Wednesday and brings together researchers, journalists and experts working on foreign interference and online manipulation.