Kremlin propaganda, hostile drones over EU soil and foreign hackers targeting European elections: these are the threats the European Parliament wants to tackle head on. On Tuesday, lawmakers backed binding rules, tougher sanctions and, for the first time, real power over social media giants.
The European Parliament adopted its report on the European Democracy Shield on Tuesday, drafted by MEP Tomas Tobé (EPP/SWE). Lawmakers backed it by 420 votes to 220, with 26 abstentions. Its central recommendation gives a legal basis to the European Centre for Democratic Resilience, launched earlier this year, equipping it with its own budget and real powers.
Platforms under pressure
The report demands that the Commission enforce its existing digital rulebook. MEPs call for full implementation of the Digital Services Act (DSA), Digital Markets Act (DMA), political advertising rules, AI Act, and European Media Freedom Act.
The document also asks the Commission to avoid delays in investigations and impose strong sanctions for persistent breaches by very large online platforms and search engines. Only this year, Brussels fined AliExpress €550m for breaching the DSA and Google €890m for two breaches of the DMA.
The Parliament also points to engagement-based recommendation systems used in social media. Lawmakers worry that they can amplify polarising content.
The European Parliament has today called for aggressive actions to defend our democratic freedoms. — Alexandre Alaphilippe, Executive Director, EU DisinfoLab
EU DisinfoLab, an organisation that fights disinformation, described this aspect as one of the strongest elements of the text. “By recognising the recommender systems of tech companies as a systemic risk for democracy and calling for new mechanisms for funding democratic resilience, the European Parliament has today called for aggressive actions to defend our democratic freedoms,” said Alexandre Alaphilippe, Executive Director of EU DisinfoLab.
On platforms more broadly, MEPs want more transparency for ads and monetisation, including disclosure of remuneration. For Telegram in particular, the report urges authorities to complete their assessment of the platform and investigate its possible role in election interference, disinformation and criminal activity, as well as possible links to Russian intelligence.
Russia remains the main threat
Beyond online platforms, the report identifies Russia as the primary external threat to European democratic integrity, while also pointing to activities linked to Belarus, China, Iran, and North Korea. MEPs call for stronger EU capacity to respond to cyberattacks, sabotage, espionage, signal jamming, and other hybrid operations. They also want sanctions expanded against actors enabling Russian disinformation and entities helping Moscow circumvent existing restrictions.
The report was first approved by Parliament’s Special Committee on the European Democracy Shield (EUDS) on 23 June, by 20 votes to nine, with two abstentions, before MEPs adopted it in plenary on Tuesday.
