On wednesday, opposition groups in Colombia have expressed their rejection of a strategic memorandum of understanding—signed over a month ago between Abelardo De la Espriella and the United States government—warning of potential socioeconomic, environmental, and territorial implications for the country, while also questioning the scope of the pact.

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The criticism centers on a potential extractive mining project targeting strategic minerals; according to the opposition, the exploitation of these resources would negatively affect ecosystems and communities located in the Amazon, the Pacific region, and parts of the Caribbean.

Senator Carolina Corcho, of the Historic Pact (in spanish Pacto Histórico) coalition, argued that the agreement subordinates national sovereignty to an extractive mining and energy model designed to serve U.S. industry.

According to the lawmaker, the document reportedly includes provisions for streamlining permits for extractive mining companies, the handover of geological maps, and granting the U.S. government prior knowledge of planned sales in Colombia to facilitate its decision-making processes.

The opposition has characterized the agreement as mercantilist, criticizing the fact that it was finalized without the participation of Colombian civil society—a group that asserts its right to have a say in how its lands are used.

¡No vamos a permitir que regalen nuestra soberanía a espaldas del país!

La administración de @ABDELAESPRIELLA firmó a oscuras un memorando que le entrega a EE. UU. el control de nuestras tierras raras y minerales estratégicos, poniendo en riesgo a nuestras comunidades campesinas… pic.twitter.com/Oel6iYraPk

— Carolina Corcho (@carolinacorcho) October 28, 2026

The text reads, “We will not allow them to give away our sovereignty behind the country’s back! The administration of @ABDELAESPRIELLA signed a memorandum in the dark that hands over to the United States control of our rare earths and strategic minerals, putting our peasant and ancestral communities at risk. Colombia’s wealth must be respected! Watch the full interview and the details of this complaint on @TeleSUR: http://youtu.be/d0pxJpb7sZY?si=ZnJ_szg_QyUlmO6J

Critics warn that the affected territories contain lithium, nickel, uranium, and copper—resources essential for the manufacture of mobile phones, computers, microprocessors, radar systems, guided missiles, and defense equipment. These materials can also be used for military purposes.

According to the allegations, a large portion of these resources would be extracted from the Amazon, the Pacific, and parts of the Caribbean—regions that hold extensive deposits of rare earths and strategic minerals. Most of these areas are inhabited by Afro-descendant, Indigenous, and peasant (rural farming) communities, which further compounds the concerns raised by the opposition.

Colombian analyst Ricardo Vargas noted that these territories possess a social sensitivity, which is why communities tend to mobilize when faced with risks to their land, water, air, and biodiversity. Vargas also pointed to measures aimed at containing social protest and warned of the presence of armed groups that illegally access these resources.

According to the allegations, the executive branch is clearing protected territories to allow for the entry of foreign entities and the exploitation of resources. The opposition claims that the document bypasses requirements for prior consultation and environmental permits, effectively placing the country’s geological and mining map at the disposal of the U.S. economy and American corporations.

Meanwhile, the executive branch has stated that the memorandum is non-binding—an argument the opposition views as an attempt to evade constitutional obligations and the mandatory review process by the Congress of the Republic.

Opposition groups have drawn parallels to the situation during the administration of Álvaro Uribe Vélez, specifically regarding the presence of military bases in the country.

A productive day in Colombia, building on the enduring friendship between our two nations.

Grateful for the warm hospitality shown throughout today's visit. pic.twitter.com/UoxYnFrfem

— Secretary Marco Rubio (@SecRubio) September 8, 2026

The memorandum was signed on September 8, 2026, in Barranquilla, during a visit by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio. The instrument establishes a framework for cooperation to secure supply chains for the mining and processing of critical minerals and rare earth elements.

According to official information, the agreement includes provisions for financing, support for geological mapping, and the streamlining of administrative procedures for extraction and processing projects. The Colombian Foreign Ministry maintains that such memoranda are non-binding and that they respect both national legislation and state sovereignty.

At the heart of this debate lies the tension between bilateral cooperation, foreign investment, and the protection of national sovereignty, strategic resources, and the rights of local communities.

A dispute over conflicting versions of a provision in Colombia’s 2027 national budget has raised questions about the bill’s legislative validity. Senator Esmeralda Hernández says the Senate and House of Representatives approved different versions of Article 65 but failed to… pic.twitter.com/kNlFunNq1o

— teleSUR English (@telesurenglish) October 21, 2026

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On Monday, the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement did something a defense treaty is not usually built to do. Its members went to Tehran to talk. Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman, Pakistan’s Field Marshal Asim Munir and Turkey’s intelligence chief Ibrahim Kalın met President Masoud Pezeshkian and Supreme National Security Council Secretary Mohsen Rezaei. […]

The post The Mecca pact goes to Tehran. Can it keep the region out of another war? appeared first on Asia Times.

Gene Simmons of KISS fame is urging the music world to get on board with artificial intelligence. The “Rock and Roll All Nite” singer was asked about his stance on AI on NewsNation’s “The Hill with Blake Burman” on Tuesday, and whether the technology will be “good or bad” for music. The Hill and NewsNation…

Gene Simmons of KISS fame is urging the music world to get on board with artificial intelligence. The “Rock and Roll All Nite” singer was asked about his stance on AI on NewsNation’s “The Hill with Blake Burman” on Tuesday, and whether the technology will be “good or bad” for music. The Hill and NewsNation…

With a crucial EU–UK summit approaching, London is seeking assurances that British manufacturers will not be disadvantaged by Europe’s new industrial policies. The dispute exposes a wider problem: how closely Britain must align with Brussels to preserve access to European supply chains.

Britain and the European Union are attempting to resolve an increasingly consequential dispute over European industrial policy, as proposed rules favouring domestically manufactured goods threaten to complicate the economic relationship that London has spent much of the past year trying to rebuild.

Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said on 27 October that the two sides were making progress towards addressing concerns surrounding the proposed Made in Europe requirements.

Speaking to Sky News, Reynolds said the governments were “finding a way through” the disagreement, although the precise terms of any compromise remain uncertain.

The negotiations come ahead of the EU–UK summit scheduled for 20 November, when Prime Minister Andy Burnham is due to meet European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President António Costa.

For British manufacturers, the immediate issue is whether political promises of closer cooperation can prevent new economic barriers from emerging.

When industrial policy becomes trade policy

The dispute centres on the European Commission’s Industrial Accelerator Act, proposed in March.

The legislation would introduce European-origin and low-carbon requirements into public procurement and certain government support schemes covering strategic industries.

Among the sectors affected are steel, cement, aluminium, automotive manufacturing and technologies associated with the energy transition.

Brussels argues that such measures are necessary to strengthen European manufacturing and reduce dependence on overseas suppliers, particularly in industries exposed to competition from China.

The economic difficulty is that European industrial production does not stop at the EU’s external borders.

British manufacturers supply components, materials and specialist engineering services to European factories, while many UK production facilities rely on parts and technologies imported from the continent.

Automotive manufacturing illustrates the problem.

Vehicles assembled in Britain frequently contain components produced in several EU countries. Equally, European automotive manufacturers incorporate British-made parts into their own production.

If eligibility for subsidies or public contracts depends increasingly on where products and components originate, companies could face incentives to reorganise supply chains.

The question is therefore not merely whether British products can enter the European market, but whether they will qualify for the same industrial support arrangements as competing European products.

France and Germany disagree

The dispute has exposed differences among EU governments.

As EU Today reported earlier this month, France has argued for a restrictive interpretation of European origin requirements, while Germany has favoured a broader approach allowing certain trusted trading partners to participate.

Berlin’s position reflects the interests of industries whose production networks extend beyond the EU, including manufacturers operating in Britain.

According to reporting on the negotiations, France and Germany have discussed a potential compromise under which Britain might receive preferential treatment if it aligns with European tariffs on Chinese goods.

Such an arrangement would have implications extending beyond manufacturing.

It would involve coordination over trade policy towards China, an area in which Britain currently retains independent decision-making authority.

No agreement has been finalised, and any legislative compromise would require approval through the EU’s institutional procedures.

Burnham’s broader European calculation

For Burnham’s government, the industrial disagreement coincides with a wider attempt to redefine relations with Brussels.

The forthcoming summit is expected to concentrate on practical agreements covering agricultural and food trade, emissions trading and temporary mobility arrangements for young people.

A sanitary and phytosanitary agreement could reduce inspections and documentation requirements for certain food products moving between Britain and the EU.

Closer coordination between emissions trading systems could also reduce complications created by different carbon-pricing regimes.

However, these initiatives do not resolve the wider question of Britain’s relationship with the European single market.

Burnham has indicated that he intends to open a broader discussion about future options, while maintaining Labour’s existing commitments against rejoining the single market, customs union or restoring general free movement during the current parliamentary term.

Reynolds has acknowledged that repeated changes in EU policy create uncertainty for British companies operating across the Channel.

The price of industrial cooperation

The underlying difficulty is structural.

Britain seeks the benefits of close industrial integration while maintaining the independence acquired through Brexit. The EU, meanwhile, is increasingly using common industrial rules, subsidies and procurement preferences to pursue economic-security objectives.

These priorities are not necessarily incompatible, but reconciling them may require new arrangements governing regulatory alignment, product origin and relations with third countries.

As EU Today previously examined, London’s request to be treated as a trusted industrial partner has already become part of the broader political negotiations.

The November summit may establish a framework for resolving some immediate concerns.

It will not, however, eliminate the fundamental problem facing British manufacturers: future decisions taken in Brussels can materially affect their competitiveness, even though Britain no longer participates directly in making those decisions.

As artificial intelligence technologies grow ever more powerful, so do the risks they pose and with them the urgency of regulating AI. In July 2026, OpenAI’s advanced models hacked into AI company Hugging Face’s systems during internal cybersecurity evaluations by communicating through unauthorized channels and working around safeguards developers had imposed on the models. In […]

The post How to regulate AI? Follow the harm appeared first on Asia Times.

Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee released in July an interim staff report accusing South Korea of “discriminatory attacks on American-owned businesses.” Seoul’s “practices include coercive investigation tactics, overly burdensome regulatory requirements, and massive fines and penalties intended to punish American businesses and make it harder for them to effectively compete against Korean companies,” the […]

The post South Korea’s rich lobbying spree isn’t paying off in DC appeared first on Asia Times.

A little more than a year ago, President Donald Trump publicly demanded that Pam Bondi, then the attorney general, find a crime to pin on former FBI Director James Comey. Trump's underlings have repeatedly tried to do that, first charging Comey with lying to Congress and then accusing him of threatening to assassinate the president. But the first indictment was dismissed because Trump had illegally appointed the prosecutor who obtained it, and the second was doomed right out of the gate because it aimed to punish constitutionally protected political speech.

The Justice Department's latest attempt to follow Trump's marching orders was revealed on Monday, when U.S. District Judge Trevor McFadden unsealed a "criminal information" that claims Comey illegally shared classified information with The New York Times on October 5, 2016. In an attempt to meet the statutory deadline for that charge, prosecutors filed it exactly 10 years after the alleged disclosure. But Comey's lawyers argue that federal law required the government to obtain a grand jury indictment within 10 years of the alleged offense, which it failed to do.

Whatever you make of that dispute, the president has made it clear that he wants to imprison Comey, a longtime nemesis because of his role in the "Russiagate hoax" during Trump's first term, and does not much care about exactly how that happens. Justice Department officials, meanwhile, are keen to pursue Trump's personal vendetta by using their prosecutorial powers as an instrument of his revenge.

The new case "would almost be funny if it weren't such an appalling abuse of the Department of Justice," Comey said in an online video on Monday. "I'm still innocent. I'm still not afraid of these people, and I still believe in the independent federal judiciary."

In the New York Times story at the center of the case, Charlie Savage and Nicole Perloth reported that Yahoo had adapted "a system intended to scan emails for child pornography" to comply with a Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court order seeking "messages containing a computer 'signature' tied to the communications of a state-sponsored terrorist organization." Savage and Perloth cited "two government officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity."

Dustin Farahnak, a special U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, says that story included "first-time disclosures of classified information not intended for the public domain." According to Farahnak, the government has evidence that Comey "directed staff" to discuss "specific accuracy concerns" about a prior Reuters report on the same subject with Savage. In the process of doing that, Farahnak says, those FBI officials "illegally transferred classified information."

Comey's attempt to set the record straight, according to Trump's henchmen, was a felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison under 18 USC 793(d), an Espionage Act provision that applies to an official who "willfully" shares "information relating to the national defense" with an unauthorized recipient when he "has reason to believe" it "could be used to the injury of the United States." Comey also faces a charge of conspiring to violate Section 793, which likewise carries a maximum 10-year sentence.

If Comey's alleged disclosure was such a grave crime, you might wonder, why did it take a decade to charge him? Because two prior investigations of the same incident concluded that criminal charges were not warranted.

Beginning in March 2017, John Durham, the U.S. attorney for the District of Connecticut, looked into the genesis of the Times article. The investigation found that James Baker, then the FBI's general counsel, was one of the anonymous sources. Baker said he had acted under instructions from FBI Chief of Staff James Rybacki, whom he understood to be conveying Comey's wishes. Durham's investigation included interviews, emails, phone records, and consideration of the relevant statutes. In December 2018, Comey's lawyers note, Durham "wrote a classified memorandum outlining the investigation and recommending 'NO prosecution for Baker or anyone else.'"

The following month, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia "opened an investigation into the same subject matter," Comey's lawyers say. That investigation "was closed without any charges in February 2020" after the office "declined to prosecute."

Given the outcomes of those two investigations, the decision to charge Comey now stinks of desperation to slake Trump's thirst for revenge. According to Comey's lawyers, the tardiness of the charges also fatally undermines the case.

Federal law generally requires that prosecutors file charges within five years of the alleged crime. But the Internal Security Act of 1950 made an exception for Section 793, saying "an indictment for any violation" of that provision "may be found at any time within ten years next after such violation shall have been committed."

The charges against Comey "should be dismissed as time barred," his lawyers argue: "Section 19 of the Internal Security Act gives the government an extended ten-year limitations period in which to charge Section 793 offenses. But as Section 19 unambiguously states, the government may invoke that extended period only by obtaining a grand jury indictment. A criminal information—which the government can issue unilaterally without grand jury involvement—does not suffice. Because the default five-year statute of limitations for federal felonies has long since elapsed on the alleged offenses, and the government's information does not meet the express statutory requirement for an extended ten-year limitations period, the information is untimely and must be dismissed."

Whichever side prevails on that issue, no one should have any illusions that the Justice Department is pursuing the mission suggested by its name. "It remains unclear what [McFadden] will do with the matter and whether DOJ will even be able to secure an indictment—as required by the Constitution," Cato Institute legal fellow Mike Fox says in an emailed press release. "Should the matter proceed, it is unequivocally clear that this case is a vindictive prosecution—a classic case of lawfare by a weaponized Justice Department."

The post The Justice Department's 3rd Attempt To Imprison James Comey Stinks of Trump's Desperation for Revenge appeared first on Reason Magazine.

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Members of the European Parliament are visiting Amazon logistics centres in Germany and Poland this week to investigate working conditions and the use of digital monitoring systems, reopening a dispute between the technology company, European legislators and trade unions over employee rights.

The fact-finding mission, scheduled for 26th and 27th October, will examine how Amazon organises work, measures employee productivity and uses automated systems in warehouses. MEPs will meet management, employees, works councils and trade union representatives, with particular attention to whether technological changes are affecting workers’ health and their ability to exercise employment rights.

The investigation comes as the European Commission prepares its Quality Jobs Act, which is expected to address algorithmic management, occupational safety and working conditions across the European economy. Amazon’s extensive logistics network makes the company a prominent example of the questions legislators must resolve.

MEPs enter warehouses after prolonged dispute

The delegation is led by Li Andersson, chairwoman of Parliament’s Employment and Social Affairs Committee, and includes Belgian MEPs Liesbet Sommen and Estelle Ceulemans, alongside representatives from several other political groups.

According to the European trade union federation UNI Europa, MEPs will inspect facilities in Dortmund and Mönchengladbach on Monday before travelling to Poland on Tuesday.

The German visits will cover older warehouse operations and newer facilities incorporating robotics, allowing parliamentarians to compare different approaches to handling orders and managing employees. The Polish programme includes a major returns facility in the Katowice area.

The visit follows several years of strained relations between Amazon and the European Parliament.

In February 2024, Parliament withdrew permanent access badges from Amazon representatives following disagreements over the company’s participation in hearings and requests for visits to its warehouses.

Amazon disputed suggestions that it was avoiding scrutiny, maintaining that it had offered alternative arrangements for parliamentary visits during periods when its logistics operations were particularly busy.

Company executives eventually appeared before the Employment and Social Affairs Committee in January 2026, where they defended Amazon’s employment policies and workplace practices.

The controversy over digital surveillance

At the centre of the dispute is the increasingly widespread use of electronic systems to monitor productivity.

Warehouse employees commonly use handheld scanners, while automated systems can help allocate tasks, coordinate movements and identify delays in processing orders.

These technologies allow employers to manage substantial logistics operations with considerable precision. They also make it possible to collect detailed information about individual workers’ activities throughout their shifts.

Trade unions argue that such monitoring can create unreasonable performance pressure, particularly where targets are adjusted automatically or workers cannot challenge assessments generated by software.

The concerns are not confined to Amazon.

A European Commission survey examined by EU Today earlier this month found that 42 per cent of surveyed smaller and medium-sized businesses already used artificial intelligence or algorithmic management systems.

However, 49 per cent of respondents expressed distrust of automated systems making decisions about employees, illustrating the distinction between using technology to support management and delegating consequential decisions to algorithms.

Previous regulatory action

Amazon has already faced formal European regulatory scrutiny over workplace monitoring.

France’s data protection authority imposed a €32 million fine on Amazon France Logistique in December 2023, announcing the decision in January 2024. The regulator concluded that certain employee monitoring practices were excessively intrusive and breached data-protection requirements.

The investigation examined the collection and retention of detailed information from warehouse scanners, including productivity indicators and periods of inactivity.

Amazon rejected the regulator’s conclusions and subsequently appealed the decision. The penalty therefore needs to be distinguished from any final judicial determination of the dispute.

The case nevertheless demonstrates that workplace monitoring falls within existing European privacy legislation, independently of proposals for new employment rules.

EU Today has also reported on the application of European data-protection law to automated employment decisions, including the question of whether meaningful human review is available when software affects a person’s ability to work.

Amazon disputes allegations

Amazon maintains that its warehouse technology is intended to improve operational efficiency, safety and the reliability of deliveries.

In its January parliamentary testimony, the company defended its investment in employee training and insisted that workers have the right to join trade unions.

It also pointed to engagement with works councils and employee representative bodies across its European operations.

Trade unions contest the adequacy of those arrangements, particularly in Germany, where the ver.di union has repeatedly sought a collective agreement covering Amazon employees.

These competing positions will form part of the parliamentary delegation’s assessment.

Implications for EU employment legislation

The Commission’s Quality Jobs initiative addresses several questions raised by the Amazon dispute, including algorithmic management, psychosocial risks and the effectiveness of collective bargaining.

Legislators must determine how far employers should be required to disclose the operation of automated monitoring systems, how employees can contest decisions and what safeguards should apply when performance targets are generated by software.

Rules must also accommodate legitimate requirements for stock management, security and workplace safety.

The parliamentary visit will not itself establish whether Amazon has breached employment legislation. It is a fact-finding exercise intended to inform future policy discussions.

Its importance lies in giving legislators direct access to warehouse operations and employee accounts before deciding how European labour law should respond to increasingly automated workplaces.

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The violence accompanying France’s October protests has revealed how foreign influence networks can exploit domestic grievances to undermine governments and European support for Ukraine. New evidence suggests Russian-linked operations were active before the riots, raising questions about whether information manipulation is moving beyond propaganda towards the mobilisation of political unrest.

France’s violent protests have exposed a vulnerability in European security that conventional policing cannot easily address: the ability of foreign information networks to exploit domestic political crises, amplify social divisions and transform legitimate grievances into instruments of geopolitical pressure.

President Emmanuel Macron has acknowledged foreign manipulation of information surrounding the disturbances of 17–18 October but insists there is no evidence that foreign actors organised the violence itself. His assessment reflects the evidence currently available, although new investigations indicate that Russian-linked networks were actively exploiting the protest movement weeks before the worst disorder began.

On 24 October, France deployed approximately 70,000 police officers and gendarmes to prevent further violence. Yet the security operation addresses only the physical consequences of a crisis whose online dimension extends across national borders.

Russia’s operations began before the riots

An investigation published on 22 October by Alliance4Europe provides evidence that Russian-linked information networks were exploiting French discontent well before the disturbances.

Researchers examined 547,471 posts and articles across nine languages. They identified 639 coordinated messages attributed with high confidence to Russia’s Doppelgänger operation, generating approximately 7.4 million views in the six weeks preceding 17 October.

The campaign used genuine concerns about living costs and public expenditure to promote a particular political argument: money allocated to Ukraine was being taken from European citizens.

This was not a random selection of grievances. France’s budget difficulties, public-service pressures and disagreements over defence expenditure provided material through which Moscow could seek to weaken support for Kyiv.

The researchers found that the operation targeted pro-European and pro-Ukraine politicians across the political spectrum. It praised selected proposals associated with Jean-Luc Mélenchon while also promoting nationalist narratives, illustrating a strategy driven less by ideological consistency than by opposition to existing European policies.

From manipulating opinion to encouraging mobilisation

An earlier investigation by EK Strategies, published on 8 October, identified an additional development.

Russian-linked channels were not merely commenting on existing demonstrations. They were circulating protest dates, identifying organisers and encouraging French audiences to follow the example of demonstrators in Germany.

On 28 September, the International Reporters network published an appeal urging French audiences to take to the streets. Other channels subsequently reproduced information about planned school blockades and demonstrations.

In one instance, a channel identified as Gavroche published rhetoric encouraging an attack on France’s Education Ministry.

Such activity goes beyond retrospective propaganda. It attempts to influence participation and behaviour while events are developing. Nevertheless, evidence that a network encouraged protests does not establish that it controlled the organisers or directed subsequent violence.

The original demonstrations arose from domestic grievances over schools, prices and government policy. The significance of the foreign activity lies in attempts to redirect and intensify an existing movement.

How France’s crisis was rewritten abroad

Once violence erupted, the information campaign acquired an international audience.

Alliance4Europe found that claims blaming migrants or Islam for the disturbances appeared in approximately one in 33 French-language posts, compared with nearly one in five English-language posts.

False allegations that immigrants had burned Limoges town hall circulated substantially more frequently in English than in French.

The same report identified 1,018 articles distributed through 28 websites associated with the Russian Pravda network. Their rapid republication across languages enabled a common narrative to reach audiences far beyond France.

The operation also presents a longer-term technological problem. Repeated publication of manipulated accounts can contaminate material subsequently retrieved or reproduced by artificial-intelligence systems, allowing false narratives to persist beyond the original campaign.

The political effects were visible when President Donald Trump and other foreign leaders portrayed France’s unrest principally through immigration and cultural conflict.

Speaking in Qatar on 21 October, Macron rejected these portrayals and criticised the circulation of fabricated AI-generated images. His remarks identified foreign manipulation after the riots but stopped short of alleging foreign responsibility for their organisation.

The Heritage Foundation and transatlantic networks

The transcript raises a more substantial allegation: that the American Heritage Foundation and Russia’s FSB have participated in a coordinated effort to destabilise France.

There are documented connections between the Heritage Foundation and political institutions associated with Hungary’s former prime minister Viktor Orbán.

A 2026 investigation into Hungarian-funded international influence networks established that the Danube Institute had channelled substantial public funding towards foreign researchers and commentators. The institute also maintained a formal relationship with Heritage.

Heritage has acknowledged its cooperation with Hungarian conservative institutions but denied receiving funding or direction from foreign governments.

These relationships demonstrate the development of transatlantic political networks capable of circulating common ideas about sovereignty, migration and European integration.

They do not establish operational cooperation with Russian intelligence. Nor has credible evidence emerged connecting Heritage to the organisation or financing of France’s October riots. Ideological convergence, institutional cooperation and participation in a clandestine operation require separate evidential assessments.

The implications for European security

The European Union’s response has exposed a regulatory problem.

Under the EU’s Digital Services Act, major online platforms must address systemic risks arising from their services, including the amplification of illegal content and threats to public security.

On 23 October, the French government announced enhanced cooperation with digital platforms. More than 100 priority reports had been submitted ahead of the weekend demonstrations, approximately half resulting in account suspensions.

These measures targeted unlawful online activity, particularly incitement to violence and looting. They did not constitute findings that the suspended accounts belonged to foreign intelligence networks.

The European Commission has likewise refrained from activating emergency measures under the Digital Services Act without sufficient evidence connecting foreign manipulation to the violence.

The broader security concern is that foreign operations can exploit the interval between the emergence of social unrest and the establishment of reliable information about its causes.

Russia need not organise an entire protest movement to advance its strategic interests. By amplifying domestic grievances, promoting hostility towards support for Ukraine and circulating distorted accounts internationally, it can attempt to convert France’s internal political difficulties into pressure on European policy.

With France approaching its 2027 presidential election, these operations warrant continuing scrutiny. The central investigative question is no longer simply whether foreign networks spread false information after violence occurred, but whether their activities before and during demonstrations materially influenced mobilisation, radicalisation or political responses.

The evidence currently demonstrates organised manipulation and attempts at amplification. Establishing direct responsibility for violence would require a further evidential step, involving financial records, communications, operational instructions or connections with identifiable perpetrators.

France’s experience illustrates how contemporary information warfare can operate within a democratic society without necessarily directing events on the ground. Its immediate objective may be to alter the political interpretation of a crisis; its longer-term consequence may be to influence the policies adopted in response.