Melike Pala
08 October 2026•Update: 08 October 2026
The EU withdrew its diplomatic service's logo from a disinformation conference in Lithuania that featured a panel portraying the US as a potential disinformation threat, citing concerns over the framing of discussions, a European Commission spokesperson said Thursday.
European Commission spokesperson Christian Wigand said the European External Action Service (EEAS) had requested the removal of its logo from materials associated with the #Disinfo2026 conference in Vilnius.
The conference included a panel Wednesday titled "USA as a FIMI threat: adapt, acknowledge, push back," with FIMI referring to foreign information manipulation and interference.
"The organizers chose to frame some of the discussions in a way which does not align with the official positions held by the EU," Wigand told reporters in Brussels.
"The reason for the request to remove the logo was due to the fact that we were not comfortable with the framing of some of the discussions at the event by the organizers on diplomatic contacts that we have," he added.
Asked whether the decision was connected to diplomatic contacts with the US, Wigand declined to comment on specific exchanges.
The Guardian reported Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter, including European officials, that the administration of US President Donald Trump had urged several governments to reconsider their support for the conference.
Canada, Lithuania and the EU's diplomatic service subsequently withdrew their sponsorship or logos following US pressure, according to the newspaper.
The European Commission, however, did not confirm that US pressure had played a role in its decision.
The #Disinfo2026 conference brings together researchers, journalists, technology experts and policymakers working on foreign information manipulation and interference.
