In his opening speech Ambassador Vytautas Leškevičius, Permanent Representative of Lithuania to NATO, noted the increase of types and frequency of security threats, especially as a result of hybrid warfare. Our civil societies increasingly become targets of hybrid attacks. Governments and armed forces do not always have the capacity to provide sufficient protection and mitigation. Both Top-Down and Bottom-Up approaches are needed in complementary manner. NATO as well has to aim for more focus on the issue of societal resilience.
Panel speakers shared their views and best practices on building societal resilience, covering both academic and practical perspectives. Particular emphasis was put on grassroots initiatives and the need to embrace modern technologies and out of the box approaches.
Audience with great interest reacted to Lithuania‘s grassroots initiatives – Debunk.eu project and phenomenon of “Lithuanian Elves”, Internet resistance movement of more than 5000 Lithuanians fighting pro-Russian „trolls” online.
The event was widely attended by Allied and partner nations‘ ambassadors and other diplomats, NATO International Staff, representatives of EU institutions, and think tanks‘ experts.
