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UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham Calls for New Information-Defence Centre at UN
By Drooid · · How we work
Burnham’s UN Address and Announcement of a New Centre
Addressing the United Nations General Assembly in New York, UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham announced that Britain will create a National Centre for Information Defence to counter what he described as an “industrial-scale assault” on the information environment by hostile states, singling out Russia.
Structure and Mandate of the Proposed Centre
The new unit will be housed within the Office for the Prime Minister and Cabinet and will operate alongside intelligence agencies, government departments, the police and social-media companies. Its stated purpose is to identify and counter coordinated disinformation campaigns targeting the United Kingdom and its allies.
Russian Government’s Rebuttal
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov dismissed Burnburn’s remarks as “nothing new” and accused Britain of stoking “anti-Russian sentiment” and fostering “total Russophobia.” Peskov added that Britain, together with Germany, France and other European states, is pursuing a “short-sighted policy” that does not bring the continent closer to de-escalation. “Well, the British prime minister said nothing new. That is the first point. The second is that stoking anti-Russian sentiment and fostering an atmosphere of total Russophobia is what Britain is doing. And now, presumably in unison with Britain, the Germans, the French and a number of other European states are doing the same thing,” — Dmitry Peskov, kremlin spokesman
Wider Implications for Europe
Burnham’s proposal signals a coordinated European effort to address perceived information-warfare threats. If implemented, the centre could deepen cooperation between UK security services and foreign partners, while also raising concerns in Moscow about the politicisation of disinformation countermeasures. The article notes that Russia has previously been accused of using illicitly obtained documents about UK-US trade talks to influence the 2019 election, underscoring the longstanding mistrust between the parties.
Verbatim Quote
“Well, the British prime minister said nothing new. That is the first point. The second is that stoking anti-Russian sentiment and fostering an atmosphere of total Russophobia is what Britain is doing. And now, presumably in unison with Britain, the Germans, the French and a number of other European states are doing the same thing,” — Dmitry Peskov, kremlin spokesman