“Foreign information manipulation and interference (FIMI) does not always appear as a single false story or a single false announcement. Instead, it operates through coordinated schemes, reinforces distrust, and exploits existing divisions. Disinformation weakens trust in institutions, media, and democratic processes. Sometimes, the goal is not to convince citizens of a particular narrative, but to make them believe that nothing is true, nothing can be trusted, and that participation does not matter. This is dangerous for any democracy, and especially significant for North Macedonia,” said Bardhyl Jashari, Executive Director of the Metamorphosis Foundation at the event “Building Resilience to Election-Related Information Manipulation.”
Representatives of all relevant stakeholders attended the event, including the Government, represented by spokesperson Marija Miteva, regulators such as the State Election Commission, represented by its president Bojan Marichikj, and the Agency for Audio and Audiovisual Media Services, represented by Sasho Bogdanovski. Marie Sophie Peyre from the Directorate-General for Enlargement and Eastern Neighborhood of the European Commission delivered an online address. Representatives of international organizations, including the European Fact-Checking Standards Network and the European Trust Alliance, were also present, along with representatives from the Ministry of Defence and members of civil society from North Macedonia and the wider region.
At the opening ceremony of the event organized by the Metamorphosis Foundation and the international organization International IDEA, speakers included Mikael Atterhög from the Embassy of Sweden, Vilma Dambrauskienė, Ambassador of Lithuania, Marija Miteva, Spokesperson of the Government of the Republic of North Macedonia, Khushbu Agrawal from International IDEA, and Bardhyl Jashari, Executive Director of the Metamorphosis Foundation.
Jashari emphasized that bringing stakeholders together for a strategic dialogue on combating FIMI is important because it reflects a shared commitment to democracy, free elections, and citizens’ right to make decisions based on facts rather than manipulation. He pointed out that democracy cannot be defended with words alone, but requires responsibility, coordination, resources, and action.
“In North Macedonia, the region, the EU, and globally, there is already substantial evidence, research, and analysis showing how foreign interference, information manipulation, disinformation, and coordinated harmful influence erode democratic trust. Elections are particularly vulnerable moments because citizens are deciding on the future, and it is precisely during these moments that the information space becomes highly exposed to manipulation and external influence,” said Jashari.
According to Metamorphosis’ latest survey on the topic, 65 percent of citizens recognize the seriousness of the disinformation problem, while 74 percent are calling for concrete action and expect institutions to respond with solutions, resources, functional systems, and clear, timely, and accountable communication.
Candidate countries, including North Macedonia, should be included in the European Democracy Shield and take an active role in strengthening European democratic resilience while contributing their own experiences. To make this possible, they need to move beyond general declarations.
“Countering FIMI is not about controlling speech or restricting debate, criticism, or political competition. It is about protecting open debate while ensuring that deception, manipulation, and coordinated interference do not undermine citizens’ ability to make free choices,” said Jashari.
Government spokesperson Marija Miteva said that one of the most complex issues facing modern societies is foreign interference and information manipulation, which targets institutions, public trust, political processes, and social stability. She noted that this influence does not operate through traditional political or security mechanisms, but through narratives and disinformation designed to create distrust and institutional erosion. These issues are increasingly being treated as a serious democratic and security challenge, and the key question is no longer whether these risks exist, but whether the state has the capacity to recognize them and respond systematically.
She said that the Government’s position is that the issue should not be addressed in a fragmented way, but through an institutional and coordinated approach to ensure system resilience. She highlighted the new cybersecurity strategy and the Law on Network and Information Systems Security from the Ministry of Digital Transformation, noting that work is underway on adopting 20 secondary legal acts. The process also covers sectors such as energy, banking, and telecommunications. Miteva also informed that the Government has established a multi-institutional working group tasked with laying the foundation for a coordinated approach to addressing disinformation campaigns.
“Efforts to counter disinformation must be handled carefully to avoid a situation where measures intended to protect the public space become restrictions on freedom of expression, because democratic societies are not defended through restrictions, but through institutional maturity,” said Miteva.
Mikael Atterhög from the Embassy of Sweden noted that his country is not immune to the threat of disinformation, and that societal resilience is particularly tested during elections.
“The Prime Minister of Sweden held a meeting with political party leaders in February this year to discuss foreign interference, as several European countries had already been exposed to attacks, which is why threats related to disinformation are taken very seriously,” said Atterhög.
He noted that since 2021, the country has had a permanent electoral network made up of various institutions that participate and share knowledge to ensure the proper conduct of elections. He added that not only institutions but also every citizen can contribute to the process, which is why efforts are also being made to strengthen public awareness about the spread of disinformation.
According to Khushbu Agrawal from International IDEA, the problem of foreign manipulation is spreading across many countries and undermines citizens’ ability to form their own opinions, with election-related disinformation being particularly dangerous. Agrawal stressed that measures and resources for defense are not optional but necessary in order to respond to these threats, and that institutions must be prepared to react and build their capacities.
In the session on identifying vulnerabilities in electoral integrity related to FIMI in North Macedonia, participants included Bojan Marichikj, President of the State Election Commission, Sasho Bogdanovski from the Agency for Audio and Audiovisual Media Services, Andrei Curăraru, a policy and security expert from Moldova, and Goran Rizaov from the Metamorphosis Foundation.
Bojan Marichikj, President of the State Election Commission, said that in the digital era, protecting the vote does not only mean physically securing ballot boxes or improving biometric voter verification, due to the significant pressure on electoral integrity from orchestrated manipulation and disinformation.
North Macedonia and the Western Balkans are a primary target of hybrid threats due to internal problems and weaknesses. Distrust in institutions, underdeveloped media literacy, and long-standing political polarization create a favorable environment for disinformation.
“When citizens do not receive fast and accurate information from state authorities, they become targets of manipulation. It can be said that election-related disinformation is treated as a geopolitical weapon, whose ultimate goal is to cause institutional paralysis, promote the idea that the system is non-functional, and discourage citizens from voting even before election day begins,” said Marichikj.
The biggest systemic weakness is insufficient legal regulation, particularly of social and online media, which remain unregulated, as well as a lack of institutional coordination, as also highlighted in the OSCE/ODIHR reports on the latest elections.
According to Goran Rizaov, we are an example of how disinformation narratives are enabled to spread during the electoral process.
“Foreign malign influence does not create new weaknesses but exploits existing ones, and it is most dangerous where there are gaps in the system. These include weak institutions that respond slowly, election financing, especially digital campaigns, societal divisions along ethnic and political lines, low professionalism in journalism, sensationalism, and the financial instability of media, as well as social platforms with no regulation. All of this together creates a highway for the spread of FIMI,” said Rizaov.
He noted that a 2024 public opinion survey showed that people most often get information from and trust personal contacts, while trust in institutions and the media is declining.
“Institutions lack coordination and it is unclear who is responsible for verifying a given piece of information or disinformation, who should communicate with the public, and who should coordinate, even though in cases of disinformation it is especially important to respond quickly. If there is no reaction within the first few hours, it may already be too late,” said Rizaov.
The event, organized by the Metamorphosis Foundation together with International IDEA, is part of the project “Combatting Electoral Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference (FIMI),” supported by Global Affairs Canada.
Vesna Radinovska (left), Manuela Stanoevska – Stoilkovska (right)
