Council of Europe Claims Russian Interference in Catalonia's Independence Process

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) asserts that there was Russian interference during Catalonia's independence process, which culminated in the illegal referendum held on October 1, 2017. This is outlined in a resolution approved this Tuesday by the majority of its members, a text that also highlights a series of similar incidents across the continent in recent years.

Specifically, the assembly's plenary voted in favour of a text regarding the Russian Federation's attempts to interfere in electoral processes and referendums that have affected several Western countries, particularly within the European Union. Among the most notable examples cited are the 2016 Brexit in the United Kingdom, the US elections of that year, the "coup d'état" by "leaders of the Catalan regional government against the Spanish constitutional order" in 2017, the French presidential elections held that same year, and more recently, the Romanian and Moldovan elections of 2024.

The mention is specifically included in Article 4 of the resolution, which passed with 141 votes in favour, 13 against, and 4 abstentions, reports Europa Press. The document, titled 'Foreign Interference: A Threat to Democratic Security in Europe', was prepared by Latvian parliamentarian Zanda Kalnina-Lukasevica of the European People's Party (EPP).

The endorsed text also warns about the "manipulation of digital technology and artificial intelligence" (AI) conducted from abroad. These actions, it adds, underscore the "urgent need" to strengthen democratic processes "against hostile threats and coordinated inauthentic behaviour online", meaning organised actions carried out by hackers that are encouraged or directly serving foreign governments or organisations.

Finally, the resolution calls on the member states of the Council of Europe to take protective and preventive measures. In this regard, it advocates integrating these threats into their national security frameworks, protecting critical infrastructures and electoral systems, as well as improving domestic and international coordination to detect these risky activities and considering an update of their legal frameworks.