Security expert explains Romania's hybrid attack wave: How Moscow turns incidents into information warfare

Russia is expected to persist with its provocations and hybrid attacks against Romania, though it will refrain from initiating an open military conflict with NATO, according to Claudiu Degeratu, former head of the Defense Section at Romania's Delegation to NATO. In an interview with "Adevărul," Degeratu analyzed recent incidents involving Russian drones, tactical cooperation with Ukraine, and Moscow's exploitation of informational vulnerabilities to undermine public trust in institutions.

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The only common element, for sure, is that all these incidents, alerts, and so on, are used as a basis for spreading disinformation and informational chaos.

Degeratu stated that Vladimir Putin is preparing unpleasant surprises for those perceived as enemies. He elaborated on how Russia leverages informational weaknesses to destabilize populations, using events like drone alerts as a basis for disinformation campaigns. "The only common element, for sure, is that all these incidents, alerts, and so on, are used as a basis for spreading disinformation and informational chaos," Degeratu explained.

He further noted that even if an incident is not directly linked to a hybrid campaign, it is still utilized communicatively. "So an event occurred, and at that moment, these echo chambers in the digital space emerge, which take and manipulate, distort facts related to these incidents and manipulate them towards the pursued objective, of a propagandistic and informational attack on Romania," he said. This process amplifies and targets specific areas, aiming to erode trust in state institutions, political parties, decision-makers, and governance.

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So an event occurred, and at that moment, these echo chambers in the digital space emerge, which take and manipulate, distort facts related to these incidents and manipulate them towards the pursued objective, of a propagandistic and informational attack on Romania.

Degeratu emphasized that this is a core tactic of hybrid warfare: waiting for a controversy or an emotionally charged event, then amplifying and redirecting it for desired outcomes. He believes that Russia's strategy involves creating and exploiting such situations to weaken Romania's internal stability and institutional credibility.

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This erosion of trust in state institutions, the erosion of image, well, the erosion of trust in parties and in the area of decision-makers and governance. So, certainly, that's what's happening, that's how a large part of hybrid warfare actually works.