May: Russia threat to our democracy
THERESA May has warned Russia that she will not tolerate its attempts to attack Western democracy by “planting fake news”.
In a tough Lord Mayor’s Banquet speech last night, the Prime Minister said Vladimir Putin’s Russia is the chief threat to open economies and free societies.
She made it clear that under her leadership Britain will “do whatever is necessary” to counter the threat from Russia.
Her foreign policy speech at the Guildhall in London stressed Britain’s security and defence strategy of taking on the Russian threat.
It appeared to be a sign to EU allies that if they cooperate on Brexit, Britain is ready to take a lead in the defence of Europe.
Mrs May said: “It is Russia’s actions which threaten the international order on which we all depend.” She said the annexation of Crimea in 2014 “was the first time since the Second World War that one sovereign nation has forcibly taken territory from another in Europe”.
But it was the alleged attempts to undermine Western democracies with fake news which most raised her ire.
She said: “It (Russia) is seeking to weaponise information. Deploying its state-run media organisations to plant fake stories and photo-shopped images in an attempt to sow discord in the West and undermine our institutions.”
The PM went on: “I have a very simple message for Russia.
“We know what you are doing and you will not succeed because you underestimate the resilience of our democracies, the enduring attraction of free and open societies, and the commitment of Western nations to the alliances that bind us.”