HYBRID COE - THE EUROPEAN CENTRE OF EXCELLENCE FOR COUNTERING HYBRID THREATS - "HYBRID BY NAME, HYBRID BY NATURE"

Hybrid CoE –
The European Centre of Excellence for
     Countering Hybrid Threats

 “Hybrid by name, hybrid by nature”

The Changing Character of Peace?
Old methods, new ways in new times.
• Changing world order
• Technological revolution
• Change in Media landscape
• Energy (all resources) as a political tool
• Generation change and interpretation of history
• Network based action
• Modern conflict
State and Non-State actors challenge balance of power,
(power of the weak = when other means not available,
credible or efficient enough)

Hybrid threat is a Western concept to describe 21st
century security challenge
• Coordinated and synchronised action, that targets
  democratic states’ and institutions systemic
  vulnerabilities, through a wide range of means.
• Exploit the thresholds of detection and attribution,
  of war and peace, internal and external, military
  and civil, public and private.
• The aim is to influence decision making at the local
  (regional), state, or institutional level to favour
  and/or gain the agent’s strategic goals while
  undermining and/or hurting the target.

Democratic states on defence - Confusion
already a victory
Our assets - Western values
• Democracy
• Democratic institutions
• Human rights (Social obligations?)
• Market economy
• Freedom of speech
• Free media
• Rule of Law
• Civil society
• Trust to State structures and authorities

GOALS - Hybrid CoE
1. To be a safe space where nations come together
   to share best practice and build capability, to test
   new ideas and approaches, to train and and
   exercise
2. To be a neutral facilitator between the EU and
    NATO through strategic discussions and
    exercising
3. To lead the conversation on countering Hybrid
    Threats through our research and sharing of
    best practice

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Basic facts - Hybrid CoE
• Initiated by 16 MSs with support from EU and NATO; 9
  signatories of MoU in April 2017
• First event organized on 6 September 2017, though
  officially inaugurated on 2 October
• Latest members RO, CY, GR
• SI, ME approved May 14th; TR pending

Managing:
• Steering Board: decides on policy, program and budget.
• Secretariat: manages common functions with core staff
  (15) and secondments (UK2, FIN2, EE, LT, DE, AT, US, LV;
  PL, CDN, GR discussed)

Communities of Interest (COIs)
• Network based approach
• COIs are networks of practitioners (or researchers) from
  Member States and institutions
• COIs for multidisciplinary sharing of best practice, experience
  and expertise for participants to better
  understand, defend against and respond to Hybrid threats
• Space to coordinate action
• Intellectual matchmaking
• Multidisplinary approach

Research and Analysis
Understanding the changing world, connecting the dots

• Conceptualising Hybrid
    Origins and traditions, characterization, changes and new security environment, trend mapping
• New research openings
    Connect unrelated areas (tech & social science), multidisciplinary, identify gaps
• Networks
    Expert-pools (regional & thematic), cooperation with COI I
• Educational training courses ”to understand hybrid”
• Research to support the COIs and Training and Exercise functions
    Handbooks, scenarios, research papers, case-studies, assistance etc.
• International joint projects
    Involving our partners
• Publications (www.hybridcoe.fi)
    Strategic analysis, research reports, recommendations & lessons identified
• Working with the EU and NATO
    Conceptualizing hybrid with JRC – putting the research together

CoE Outreach in non-EU/NATO-members
• Hybrid developments in the neighborhood/partner countries
  clear → Collective need to know and to care
• Collect information and experiences of the neighboring regions
  to benefit for the CoE activities
• Cooperation with academia in and academia doing research on
  these areas. EU and NATO research bodies
• Guests contributing to the knowledge base, ideas, and best
  practice of the CoE
• Combine outreach with EU- and NATO-activities and other
  “same-aim” actors in the regions, ”twinning”-pilots
• This is: No capacity building but cooperation when beneficial to
  the CoE and Memberstates
• Fact finding to Georgia in March

EaP partners in particular

• Their needs and commitment essential
• Mapping of existing projects/financing
• Practitioners’ cross-sectoral cooperation in the
  regions?
• Partners’ experiences of hybrid warfare
• Peer-support? What and where?
• EaP participation in events as speakers
• Cooperation with academia?

Conclusions
• Western values
• All have vulnerabilities
• Rational and intellectually honest analysis
• Corner stones of democracy challenged
• Comprehensive All-govt – inter-institutional
  approach vital
• Obvious demand for joint actions
• Hybrid CoE as a catalyst

Twitter @HybridCoE

www.hybridcoe.fi