There is no systematic approach in North Macedonia for addressing foreign interference and information manipulation (FIMI), nor is there an institutional mechanism for rapid and coordinated response. This policy gap threatens national security, public trust in institutions, and democratic stability. This was concluded at today’s expert thematic meeting dedicated to the threats of FIMI, organized by the Parliamentary Committee on Defense and Security in cooperation with the Institute of Communication Studies (ICS).

“Our country is not immune to these challenges. As a geopolitically important state, a NATO member, and an EU candidate, North Macedonia is exposed to these threats, which require an integrated societal and media response. As the Committee on Defense, we have a duty to monitor and debate security—beyond traditional threats,” stated General Dr. Pavle Arsoski, Chair of the Committee on Defense and Security.

Aleksandra Temenugova from ICS stated that institutional maturity and societal resilience are necessary for recognizing and addressing foreign interference and manipulation of information.

“Our focus is to raise the issue of malicious and intentional information manipulation by external actors—state or non-state—higher in public discourse. Our goal is to jointly highlight the harmful effects of these sophisticated tactics and techniques, which are hard to detect yet skillfully occupy public space, infiltrating through culture, religion, business, and ethnic relations. But we cannot do this alone. If we follow relatively successful models from several EU countries, the recipe for success lies in a comprehensive approach—a coordinated effort by all stakeholders: decision-makers, civil society organizations, media, and of course, citizens themselves,” said Temenugova.

At the event, which brought together MPs, experts, representatives of institutions, media, and the civil sector, ICS presented two analytical studies: “Foreign Interference and Information Manipulation in the Republic of North Macedonia” and “Addressing Foreign Information Manipulation in the Context of European Regulations.”

Findings from both studies point to serious institutional and legal weaknesses in responding to coordinated disinformation campaigns driven by foreign state and non-state actors. The lack of strategic coordination, dysfunctional legal mechanisms, a vulnerable media environment, and low levels of media literacy make the country susceptible to hybrid threats and manipulative narratives.

“Macedonian institutions are at an early stage of effectively addressing these issues—there is awareness, but very little concrete action. The only document is the Strategy for Addressing Hybrid Threats, which contains many citations and is academically written, but with few operational activities,” emphasized university professor Metodi Hadji-Janev, one of the study authors.

“Foreign interference and information manipulation also encompass hybrid warfare, which is why collaboration among institutions across different sectors—defense, security, and media—is essential,” said Konrad Bleyer-Simon from the European University Institute in Florence, Italy, and co-author of one of the studies. He noted that North Macedonia faces between one and five such attacks annually and stressed that proposed measures should come from independent agencies.

The discussion concluded that tackling foreign interference and information manipulation should be based on a comprehensive and democratic approach, where institutions, civil society, media, and international partners collaborate to build a resilient and informed society. Institutional response must be swift, proportionate, and transparent, in line with NATO and EU standards and values.

The meeting was organized as part of the project “TRACE: Tracking, Exposing, and Countering Hidden Foreign Manipulations and Interferences,” implemented by the Institute of Communication Studies with financial support from the British Embassy in Skopje.

Download the analysis “Foreign Interference and Information Manipulation in the Republic of North Macedonia.”

Download the policy paper “Addressing Foreign Interference and Information Manipulation in the Context of European Regulations.”