9 EU, NATO nations set up center to fight hybrid threats

Foreign Service Officer Donna Welton from the US, signs the Memorandum of Understanding in Helsinki, Finland, Tuesday, April 11, 2017. A group of European Union and NATO nations have agreed to establish a European "hybrid threat" center in Finland to combat unconventional methods of warfare such as disinformation and fake news. (Markku Ulander/Lehtikuva via AP) (The Associated Press)

Finnish Foreign Minister Timo Soini attends the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding in Helsinki, Finland, Tuesday, April 11, 2017. A group of European Union and NATO nations have agreed to establish a European "hybrid threat" center in Finland to combat unconventional methods of warfare such as disinformation and fake news. ( Markku Ulander/Lehtikuva via AP) (The Associated Press)

HELSINKI – A group of European Union and NATO nations have agreed to establish a European "hybrid threat" center in Finland to combat unconventional methods of warfare such as disinformation and fake news.

Nine countries — Britain, Finland, France, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Sweden and the United States — signed a memorandum Tuesday to set up the center in Helsinki with the support of the Finnish government.

Lorenz Meyer-Minneman, head of NATO's civil preparedness unit, says the European Center of Excellence for Countering Hybrid Threats will serve as a platform for EU and NATO to pool resources and share expertise.

EU and NATO pledged in July to increase cooperation in the areas of cyber defense and countering hybrid threats.

Nordic neighbors Finland and Sweden are members of the EU, but not NATO.