Finland opens a new center to fight 'hybrid threats' from Russia and beyond

[Tennis]

In a sign of just how seriously countries are taking Moscow’s attempts to destabilize them, 11 European governments plus the United States have now joined forces to build a special think tank about new kinds of war.

Based in Finland’s capital Helsinki, the European Center of Excellence for Countering Hybrid Threats launched on Monday to research “hybrid war” — the strategic use of diplomacy, politics, media, cyberspace and military to destabilize and undermine an opponent’s government.

Relations between Russia and the West have reached a new low and tensions along Moscow’s borders with NATO and the European Union have been rising. At the heart of this growing standoff is Russia’s combination of military posturing, disinformation and 21st-century technology: Russian jets have probed Finnish and Swedish airspace; Russian propaganda has targeted the Baltic countries of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania; and the US has accused the Kremlin of interfering in its 2016 elections.

Moscow has denied meddling in other countries' internal affairs and claimed its military posturing is a justified reaction to NATO encroaching on its borders.

Against this backdrop, the new center is dedicated to finding effective ways to push back.

“Hybrid threats call for enhanced awareness,” Finnish President Sauli Niinistö said at the center’s inauguration. “We have to understand at the strategic level the aims and means of our adversaries.”

Similar centers already exist in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania and NATO has two dozen accredited centers of excellence. But the European Center of Excellence for Countering Hybrid Threats in Helsinki is the first to link the military alliance with the auspices of the EU. Moreover, the new center in the far north is meant to function as a complement to the other centers and highlight the increased cooperation underway between the EU and NATO since Russia’s annexation of Crimea and war in Ukraine in 2014.

Speaking at the event, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg pointed out that Moscow’s actions have sparked new cooperation in the region and that the center was evidence that “Europe is moving quickly to respond to Russia.” Similarly, Federica Mogherini, the European Union’s foreign policy chief, said the center is a sign that the two organizations are cooperating at “an unprecedented level,” as evidenced by Finland, an EU country that is not a NATO member, being the host.

“A strong European Union in terms of security and defense makes also NATO stronger,” said Mogherini.

For Finland, hosting the center is another point in the country’s slow foreign policy shift since the early 1990s. During the Cold War, Helsinki walked a tense tightrope in its relations between Moscow and the West. But since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, Helsinki has cooperated more closely with NATO and debated joining it at times. While formal membership in NATO isn’t an imminent possibility, Finland and non-NATO member Sweden are moving ever closer to the alliance, even signing agreements allowing NATO to operate on their territory in the event of a conflict in the region. And just last week, Finland and Poland reached a new deal to cooperate in fighting cyberthreats.

But while Russia’s actions may be the impetus for the initiative, the new center’s work won’t be limited to only tracking the Kremlin’s merging of overt and covert tactics. It will also focus on how groups like ISIS use social media and propaganda to further their message. Moreover, in addition to the external threats, the center will also look at how internal issues like race relations and economic inequality can also work to undermine democratic governments.

“The main issue is the changing nature of the security environment,” said Hanna Smith, the Helsinki center's director of strategic planning and responses. “New insights, and indeed foresights, are needed to be better prepared.”

The key question for the new center in Helsinki will be how to utilize this new unity in a way that will increase its members’ security.

“It's too early to tell,” said Jed Willard, director of the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Center for Global Engagement at Harvard who has consulted the Finnish and Swedish governments on strategic communications. “But given the lack of understanding of the problem among policy makers and the general public, and its politicization in the [United States], even small help is useful.”

Seems like this could be fearmongering by the Fins.

Why not focus on more important matters and just work on diplomacy instead.

[Uzkin]

Seems like this could be fearmongering by the Fins.

Why not focus on more important matters and just work on diplomacy instead.

Indeed. One of the persons involved was asked to define "hybrid threads" and he said, roughly, that those can be any kind of hostile actions performed by any foreign actor in order to pursue any kind of objective. When something is defined to mean everything it doesn't mean anything.

Basically, this is yet another way to dwell in, and spread, anti-russian hysteria. I'm sure the center will be an excellent hole to sink money into; a bunch of guys and gals being paid to be paranoid about everything. Non-constructive, non-productive, ill-defined, and a total waste of time and money, like so many western actions these days.

[Deleted]

Canadian army pulls anti-tank missiles out of storage as tensions increase with Russia

Canada had sold off most of its tube launched optically sighted wire guided missiles and mothballed a few of the anti-tank weapons, assuming they would not be needed

As tensions increase with Russia, the Canadian military is pulling anti-tank missiles out of storage and will start distributing them to troops next year.

The Canadian Army had sold off most of its tube launched optically sighted wire guided (TOW) missiles and mothballed a few of the anti-tank weapons, assuming they would not be needed in the future.

But with Canada now stationing troops on Russia’s borders, soldiers will require the weapons to counter the Kremlin’s robust armoured forces, military sources say.

Brig.-Gen. Derek Macaulay, chief of staff for army strategy, confirmed the service is re-introducing the tripod-mounted missile system to all regular force infantry battalions.

“Each battalion will receive its complement of systems with all systems being fielded and deployable by summer 2017,” Macaulay said in a statement to the Ottawa Citizen. “We are not purchasing new systems at this time, but rather re-introducing what we had placed into preservation.”


The TOW missiles are designed to destroy armoured vehicles. Although the army has other weapons to deal with such targets, the TOW system is considered among the most effective. Its missile has a range of about 3,700 metres.

NATO has begun preparations for escalating from the Cold War into a hot one.

Courses for training troops on using the TOW system are now underway at Canadian Forces Base Gagetown, N.B., the army noted.

Macaulay denied the move was related to the increase in tensions with Russia. The re-introduction of the weapons is “not in response to any external influence” but instead a decision to deal with a gap in a capability that is fundamental to how the army operates, he said.

It is not clear why such missiles were removed from service in the first place if they are so critical to how the army operates.

But the initiative comes as Canada and NATO turn up the heat militarily on Russia, prompting some observers to point out the West has started a new Cold War with the Kremlin.

NATO is establishing a more permanent and extensive troop presence on Russia’s borders and is sending thousands of soldiers to the region.

Canada recently announced it would deploy about 450 soldiers to Latvia as part of those efforts. It will also keep a warship in the region and contribute fighter jets at different times to the NATO mission.

Peggy Mason, a former security adviser to the Mulroney government, says the moves by the Liberals are further provoking an already tense situation.

“What we’re seeing is Justin Trudeau and his government continuing with the most disagreeable aspects of Stephen Harper’s foreign policy,” said Mason, president of the Rideau Institute in Ottawa.

“People didn’t vote for that. They voted for change.”

At the same time the Liberal government has appeared to have turned its back on talks with Russia, she added.

http://nationalpost.com/news/canada/...se-with-russia

Seems like this could be fearmongering by the Canadians.

Why not focus on more important matters and just work on diplomacy instead.

[Puupi]

Indeed. One of the persons involved was asked to define "hybrid threads" and he said, roughly, that those can be any kind of hostile actions performed by any foreign actor in order to pursue any kind of objective. When something is defined to mean everything it doesn't mean anything.

Basically, this is yet another way to dwell in, and spread, anti-russian hysteria. I'm sure the center will be an excellent hole to sink money into; a bunch of guys and gals being paid to be paranoid about everything. Non-constructive, non-productive, ill-defined, and a total waste of time and money, like so many western actions these days.

I can define a hybrid threat: Uzkin.

[Tennis]

Russiaboos BTFO.

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Diplomacy with Russia requires guns and plans to use them. Deal with it.

What's some guns gonna do to stop the Russian army? Finland is a minnow compared to Russia.

[Masark]

What's some guns gonna do to stop the Russian army? Finland is a minnow compared to Russia.

Finland has given Russia a hard time before.

[Iphie]

What's some guns gonna do to stop the Russian army? Finland is a minnow compared to Russia.

Might want to check the 'Winter War' and the 'Continuation War' before making sweeping statements. The fact that Finland came out independent after WWII is a testament to the capabilities of the Finnish Army.

[Vapo]

So setting up a center to find, understand and block covert OPs to destabilize local goverments etc like happened in Crimea is warmongering? how about those actions happening then? are they diplomatic? Finland has pretty good diplomatic standings with russia, and we used to trade a lot with them until sanctions were set due to said Crimea takeover.

Talking face to face doesnt work if the other party is trying to dig ground underneath you. And thats whats the center is for, finding out if such digging is going on so the diplomacy can be done on firm grounds.

[Dreknar20]

Why not focus on more important matters and just work on diplomacy instead.

reality is not a cartoon

Sheer power, always has and always will be the most important factor in foreign policy

Does not matter how much moralists/idealists say power is icky icky bad guy word

[Shakadam]

Oh look it's Tennisace with another thread about Finland for some reason.

[Realitytrembles]

Russiaboos BTFO.

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Diplomacy with Russia requires guns and plans to use them. Deal with it.

Indeed. Finland knows all about Russian ambitions. Finns have a damned impressive military for a country and economy their size.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V%C3%A...%A4m%C3%B6inen would be proud.

[Uzkin]

I can define a hybrid threat: Uzkin.

In my opening post, I wanted to give an example of a retarded definition of the term, quite obviously born in the mind of a russophobe and a paranoid.

Thanks for another such example.

[Sorshen]

Tennisace being clueless about Finland-Russia relations? Say it ain't so! Should stick to obesity and marriage.

[Dmitro]

Its anti-american first of all, we've been spying on them for decades, now they are using the so called "russian threat" to build some protection.

I guess the EU is helping them massively.

bad

same shit btw with "EU army" to protect themselves from "Russia"

[Deleted]

Surkovs genius scaring the Fins leads to a nothing story. Exciting.

[Dezerte]

I don't know about diplomacy, Russian diplomacy seems to consist of "Don't join NATO, or else" at the moment. But we should always strive towards resolving things peacefully.

[Deleted]

Oh look it's Tennisace with another thread about Finland for some reason.

He has a man crush on me.