In a sobering address to world leaders, Mr. Burnham described what he called an “industrial-scale assault by hostile actors on the information environment” — a phrase that sounds abstract until you think about what it means for ordinary people scrolling through their phones every morning. He was talking about the steady, relentless, and often invisible effort to poison the shared facts we rely on to make sense of the world. Over the past several years, he said, the United Kingdom and many of its closest allies have been subjected to a coordinated campaign of lies, half-truths, and manufactured fear, aimed not at any one government but at the very idea of a shared reality. The source of much of this assault, he argued, is Russia. According to Mr. Burnham, Russian agencies have used every tool they can find to spread disinformation and prey on people’s anxieties — from automated social media accounts to fake websites designed to look like legitimate news outlets, to falsified articles engineered to go viral before anyone can check them. The goal is not simply to win an argument, but to erode trust in institutions, to deepen social divisions, and to make people feel so confused and cynical that they no longer know what or whom to believe. And while the methods are constantly evolving, the underlying strategy is old: stir up anger, exploit fear, and let democratic societies tear themselves apart from the inside.
The scale of the problem goes far beyond occasional fake stories or rogue accounts. Mr. Burnham pointed to concrete evidence of election interference, revealing that the UK has proof that Russian actors tried to interfere in the 2019 General Election. He also warned that these same forces have tried to amplify far-right narratives and stir up tension and unrest after horrific events. One of the most chilling examples he cited was the violent rioting that followed the fatal stabbing of three young girls at a dance class in Southport in July 2024. In the immediate aftermath of that tragedy, false information shared online helped spark real-world chaos, as people who were already frightened and angry were fed lies about what had happened and who was responsible. It is a stark reminder that disinformation is not an abstract threat or a problem for another day. It has consequences measured in smashed windows, injured police officers, families terrorized in their own neighborhoods, and communities left traumatized. And it is not unique to the UK. Similar patterns have emerged across Europe, in the United States, and elsewhere — with fake accounts, manipulated videos, and deliberately confusing headlines designed to make people distrust their own eyes. Mr. Burnham’s warning was blunt: this is not a series of one-off incidents. It is a systemic, well-funded campaign to destabilize democratic countries by attacking the information ecosystem they depend on.
The money with the backing is substantial. Mr. Burnham maintained that the Kremlin spends roughly $1.7 billion a year on manipulating information — a figure that puts the disinformation machine on par with the budgets of major media empires and intelligence agencies. That money buys troll armies, bot networks, advertising, and a sprawling digital infrastructure capable of reaching millions of people in a matter of hours. But it’s not just about fake news. British companies and institutions have also suffered serious cyber-attacks, suggesting that the same actors who wage information warfare are willing to attack critical infrastructure and steal data for leverage. And, as Mr. Burnham pointed out, the threat is only going to grow more dangerous because of artificial intelligence. AI can generate convincing fake videos, synthetic voices, and entire fraudulent news articles at a speed and scale that human fact-checkers simply cannot match. It can also make it harder to tell the difference between genuine sources and fabricated ones, accelerating the erosion of public trust. In his words, “AI will multiply the threat.” That is not an exaggeration. When anyone with a laptop and the right software can create a deepfake of a political leader saying something they never said, the very concept of evidence becomes fragile. The information environment is already under strain; AI threatens to shatter it unless democracies act now.
So what does the UK intend to do about it? Mr. Burnham announced the creation of a new National Centre for Information Defence — an institution designed to detect, attribute, and disrupt information attacks before they can cause serious harm. Think of it as a national guard for the truth. Its job will be to monitor the digital battlefield, identify hostile actors and their tactics, expose their operations, and strengthen the defenses of democratic institutions so that lies are less likely to take root. But the UK does not intend to go it alone. Mr. Burnham made clear that Britain is ready to share its experience and expertise with other countries, pointing to recent assistance provided to Moldova, which faced alleged Russian interference while protecting its elections. As more elections approach across Europe, more nations are grappling with these issues — some for the first time. They are realizing that a disinformation attack can be just as damaging as a military incursion, and that defense requires cooperation across borders. As Mr. Burnham put it, “We’re ready to share our understanding of how these actors work, and how we can respond — because this is vital for our collective security and resilience.” The philosophy behind this is simple: information warfare does not respect national borders, so neither can the defense against it. By pooling knowledge and coordinating responses, democracies can build a stronger, more resilient front against those who would manipulate their citizens.
Artificial intelligence is a critical part of the picture, and not just because of the dangers it poses. Mr. Burnham described Frontier AI — the cutting edge of the technology as it is being developed right now — as “one of the most significant challenges and opportunities of our age.” He announced that the UK is developing a new AI defence partnership with the United States, focused on protecting critical national infrastructure. This is significant because the same kinds of systems that power chatbots and recommendation algorithms are becoming embedded in power grids, transportation networks, water systems, and health services. If those systems are not secure, a hostile actor could cause enormous disruption to everyday life — not by dropping a bomb, but by manipulating data and causing chaos. The partnership with the US is intended to address these vulnerabilities before they are exploited. But security is only half of the equation. Mr. Burnham stressed that the fundamental decisions about AI “are too important to be left to chance” and “must be taken by elected governments who serve working people.” That is a profound statement. It suggests that the rules governing AI — what it can be used for, what data it can access, who is responsible when it causes harm — should not be set by a handful of tech billionaires or private companies operating behind closed doors. They should be made by democratic institutions that are accountable to the public.
Finally, Mr. Burnham made the case for a coordinated global approach. He said the UK will work toward agreeing a single set of global principles and standards for AI, ensuring the transparency and access needed to increase preparedness, and guaranteeing that AI development is safe. This is not just about regulations for its own sake; it is about creating a shared foundation of rules and norms so that no country is left to fight these battles alone and no corporation can evade responsibility by moving across borders. The United Nations has consistently upheld that the best way to address AI risks is to bring countries together to adopt shared principles and commitments on AI governance. Mr. Burnham’s message aligns with that vision. At its heart, his speech was a warning, but it was also an appeal for unity and resilience. He was saying that democracies need to recognize how serious the threat is, that they need to defend themselves with the same energy they would bring to a military conflict, and that they need to do it together. The fight against disinformation and the responsible development of AI are not side issues. They are central to whether open societies can survive and thrive in the twenty-first century. The good news is that it is not too late to act — but the window for action is closing, and the next few years will be decisive.