UK to Europe: The time to counter Russia's information war machine is now

The UK's foreign secretary is calling for closer collaboration with Europe to combat the growing threat of information warfare as hybrid attacks target countries on the continent.

In a wide-ranging speech due later this afternoon, Yvette Cooper will remind senior diplomats and European dignitaries of the methods that "malign foreign states" are using to undermine trust in domestic powers.

"Across Europe we are witnessing an escalation in hybrid threats – from physical through to cyber – designed to weaken critical national infrastructure, undermine our interests and interfere in our democracies all for the advantage of malign foreign states," she is expected to say.

Cooper will also say that the tools available to hostile foreign forces to sow distrust in matters such as elections are democratized, allowing lower-skilled individuals and groups to carry out effective campaigns on behalf of a nation.

In a draft of her speech, seen by The Register, the ...