Regional Conference on Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference (FIMI) and Disinformation

REGIONAL CONFERENCE ON FIMI AND DISINFORMATION

📅 6–7 May 2026
📍 Science and Technology Park, Podgorica (Day 1: Conference Hall Unicorn, II floor; Day 2: MVP Conference Room, II floor)

Held under the Chatham House Rule, the conference explores how governments and societies can anticipate (prebunk), prevent, and respond (debunk) to malign information operations. Filming and recording is allowed only in the opening session. The preparation of this conference is supported by the Atlantic Council of Montenegro.

Conference programme:

DAY 1 – Wednesday, 6 May 2026

🕘 09:00 – 09:30 | OPENING REMARKS

Objectives, Chatham House Rule, Expected Outcomes

Conference host: Ms. Vanja Madzgalj, Senior Project Manager, WB3C

Speakers:

• Mr. Gilles Schwoerer, WB3C
• Mr. Filip Ivanović, Deputy Prime Minister for Foreign and European Affairs, Government of Montenegro
• Mr. Emanuele Giaufret, Deputy Managing Director - Western Europe, European External Action Service (EEAS) 

🕤 09:30 – 10:15 | KEYNOTE ADDRESS

FIMI as a National Security and Governance Challenge

How foreign influence exploits governance gaps — a historical reflection and how states respond without undermining freedoms.

Speaker: Mr. David Colon, PhD, Associate Professor, Sciences Po, France

🕥 10:15 – 11:15 | CASE STUDY

Anatomy of Disinformation Operations: Case Study and Lessons Learned

From storyline to impact: mapping actors, vectors, and decision-making pressure points.

Speaker: Mr. Ronan Mouchoux, Co-founder and CTO,  XRATOR, France

☕ 11:15 – 11:45 | NETWORKING BREAK

🕦 11:45 – 12:30 | PANEL 1

How FIMI Operations Actually Work

What distinguishes organic debate from coordinated manipulation? Evidence thresholds: what is enough to act as a government? How can early detection enable prebunking of emerging narratives before they take hold?

Speakers:

• Ms. Lejla Turčilo, PhD, Full Professor at the Faculty of Political Science, University of Sarajevo
• Mr. Miroslav Sazdovski, Senior Analyst, European Centre of Excellence for Countering Hybrid Threats
• Mr. Filip Stojanovski, Metamorphosis Foundation

Moderator: Mr. Marko Banović, Digital Forensic Centre, Montenegro

🕧 12:30 – 13:15 | CASE STUDY

Disrupting a Covert Influence Operation: The REST Media / Rybar Case

A deep dive into a Russian state-affiliated influence operation, examining tactics, attribution, and links to the Western Balkans. The session will also explore how such networks can be exposed and disrupted, including legal and operational approaches to tackling FIMI infrastructure.

Speaker: Mr. Jakub Kubś, PhD, Researcher at GLOBSEC

🍽 13:15 – 14:15 | LUNCH BREAK

🕑 14:15 – 15:00 | PANEL 2

Election Integrity: Building Resilience

A whole-of-society approach to countering FIMI — institutions, platforms, media, and rapid response protocols for the final mile including prebunking of electoral manipulation narratives.

Speakers:

• Ms. Milica Kovačević, President, Centre for Democratic Transition (CDT)
• Mr. Zlatko Vujović, PhD, CEO of the European Network for Election Monitoring (ENEMO)
• Ms. Danijela Vojinović, Centre for Research, Transparency and Accountability (CRTA)
• Ms. Madalina Voinea, EFOR, Romania

Moderator: Ms. Olivera Komar, PhD, Full Professor at the Faculty of Political Science, University of Montenegro

🕒 15:00 – 15:45 | PANEL 3

Response Options: What is Legitimate, Effective and Safe 

Public communication under uncertainty, legal tools, cross-government coordination, institutional trust, media literacy

 Speakers:

• Mr. Thibaud Perrard (Mhack), THUCY, Cybersecurity expert and founder of Offensive Intelligence
• Ms. Radica Zeković, Director General at the Directorate for Media, Ministry of Culture and Media of Montenegro
• Mr. Jetmir Rajta, Specialist at the Sector for Statistics, Modelling and Indicator Analysis, National Authority for Cybersecurity of Albania

Moderator: Mr. Draško Jabučanin, Analyst, Digital Forensic Centre, Montenegro

🕓 15:45 – 16:00 | DAY 1 CLOSING

Reflection and Family Photo

DAY 2 – Thursday, 7 May 2026

🕘 09:00 – 09:15 | MORNING BRIEFING AND OPENING REMARKS

Recap & Key Takeaways

Speaker: Ms. Sofia Badari, Programme Manager for Cybersecurity, DG ENEST

🕤 09:15 – 10:15 | PANEL 4

Safeguarding the European Path: Building Resilience in the Western Balkans

Strengthening institutions, defending public trust, and reducing vulnerabilities to foreign interference.

Speakers:

• Ms. Biljana Papović, State Secretary, Ministry for European Affairs of Montenegro
• Ms. Natalie Pauwels, Head of the Strategic Coordination and Communication Unit, DG ENEST
• Mr. Miroslav Sazdovski, Senior Analyst, European Centre of Excellence for Countering Hybrid Threats
• Ms. Armela Krasniqi, Chairwoman of the Audiovisual Media Authority of Albania

Moderator: Nikoleta Đukanović, PhD, Associate Professor, Faculty for Humanistic Studies, University Donja Gorica

🕤 10:15 – 10:25 | INSIGHT

Election Integrity in the Age of FIMI: Lessons from Election Observation

Speakers: Ms. Jelena Stefanović, MPA, Political and Election Expert, OSCE; Serbia

🕥 10:25 – 11:10 | PANEL 5

Judicial Response to FIMI and Disinformation
From digital evidence to prosecution of FIMI. Strengthening rule of law in the digital space.

Speakers:

• Ms. Audrey Gerbaud, Deputy Prosecutor at the Paris Judicial Court, Cyber Department J3
• Mr. Arben Murtezić, PhD, Legal Counsel at the Office of Vice President of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina
• Ms. Marina Barbir, Judge at Higher Court in Belgrade
• Mr. Ivan Jokić, Head of Cybercrime Unit, Police Administration of Montenegro 

Moderator: Ms. Ana Bukilić, Programme Manager at IDLO

☕ 11:10 – 11:40 | NETWORKING BREAK

🕦 11:40 – 12:40 | PANEL 6

Media on the Frontline of the Fight Against Disinformation    

How media organisations detect, verify, respond to, and build resilience against disinformation, including AI-generated content with a focus on debunking practices and audience trust.

Speakers:

• Mr. Nicolas Goinard, Journalist, Ouest-France
• Mr. Marko Banović, Analyst, Digital Forensic Centre
• Ms. Adelina Hasani, PhD, Head of Research  at Kosovar Institute for Policy Research and Development (KIPRED)
• Ms. Sunčica Bakić, Director, Agency for Audio-Visual Media Services of Montenegro

Moderator: Olivera Nikolić, Director of Montenegro Media Institute

🕧 12:40 – 14:10 | INTERACTIVE EXERCISE

War Game: Tabletop Simulation

Mixed country groups with assigned roles. Injects: manipulated video, leaked documents, coordinated hashtags, proxy media, diaspora channels, offline incidents. Participants will test both prebunking and debunking responses under time pressure.

Facilitators:

• Mr. Ronan Mouchoux, Co-founder and CTO, XRATOR
• Mr. Thibaud Perrard (Mhack), THUCY, Cybersecurity expert and founder of Offensive Intelligence
• Mr. Nicolas Goinard, Journalist, Ouest-France 

🕑 14:10 – 14:15 | CLOSING REMARKS

Conference Wrap-up 

🍽 14:15 – 15:15 | LUNCH  

✈️ DEPARTURE

Following the money remains one of the most effective ways to investigate crime — and today, that increasingly means following crypto-assets.

Western Balkans Cyber Capacity Centre (WB3C), in cooperation with EU4FAST, delivered training on crypto investigations for law enforcement officers from the Western Balkans, last week, led by our in-house trainer Yannick Casse.
As cryptocurrencies become more widely used, they are also being exploited in a range of criminal activities — from ransomware and fraud to money laundering and illicit online markets. While transactions may appear anonymous, most blockchain systems are inherently transparent and traceable, offering investigators valuable entry points when the right skills and tools are applied.
This training focused on building essential investigative capabilities, including:
🔓 Understanding how blockchain and cryptocurrency transactions work
🔓 Differentiating between levels of anonymity 
🔓 Tracing transactions across public ledgers
🔓 Identifying links between crypto activity and criminal behaviour
🔓 Preserving and presenting digital evidence for legal proceedings

The objective is to equip investigators with the foundational knowledge needed to engage with crypto-related cases, support financial investigations and collaborate more effectively across agencies and borders.

Strengthening capabilities in this area is key to ensuring that law enforcement can keep pace with the financial dimension of cyber-enabled crime and turn digital traces into actionable intelligence. This is one of our primary areas of training within the cybercrime pillar.

From 27–30 April 2026, Western Balkans Cyber Capacity Centre (WB3C) delivered a 4-day foundational training on dark web investigations for law enforcement officers from the Western Balkans, led by our in-house trainer Cyril C.
The dark web continues to host a significant share of illicit activity, from marketplaces trading drugs, weapons and stolen data, to forums enabling cybercrime services, financial fraud and emerging forms of organized digital crime. For investigators, this environment presents both a challenge but also an opportunity to build successful cases using various digital traces and operational mistakes.
This training focused on building those foundational skills, including:
🛡️ Understanding how the dark web ecosystem functions (networks, access points, anonymity layers)
🛡️ Identifying and navigating relevant platforms and marketplaces
🛡️ Applying basic OSINT techniques in a dark web context
🛡️ Preserving and handling digital evidence in line with investigative standards
🛡️Linking online activity to real-world criminal investigations

The aim is to equip investigators with the baseline knowledge and practical tools needed to operate confidently in this space and support more advanced, specialised work.

At WB3C, this is part of a broader effort to translate knowledge into operational capability, ensuring that law enforcement institutions across the region are better prepared to respond to evolving cyber-enabled threats.