THE CONCEPT OF HYBRID THREATS

Abstract

In 2016, during the Warsaw summit, NATO and EU reached an agreement to improve the cooperation in the fight against the hybrid threats, describing the security situation in Europe as space where many hybrid activities take place. The security environment of the modern democratic societies is endangered due to the intensive hybrid activities that are manifested via campaigns aimed to misinform, hostile cyber-activities and radicalisation of vulnerable groups in the society.The security environment during the Cold War was defined with the two confronting super powers, with each trying to surpass the other building an international security system of bipolar relations. Today, in state of hybrid threats, when the security environment is not more secure than during the Cold War, the security setting is much harder to define. The threats, methods of action and activities are multidimensional and the relations among various actions remain unclear.The state actor constantly try to become stronger, while the non-state actors seek own statehood or recognition of their activities. Seeking to achieve their own ambitions, the non-state actors challenge the West and its institutions, representing thus hybrid threats for their security. Dealing with the hybrid threats includes synchronised use of military and non-military means against specific weaknesses of the enemy. Unless detected and dealt within timely manner, the state of dealing with hybrid threats will reach the state of hybrid warfare.We live in a time of hybrid influences, where state and non-state actors challenge the modern western democracies and their institution that are considered to be a threat or competition in meeting their goals and interests. The aim of the hybrid threats is to create – by detecting the adversary’s weaknesses, such as ideological differences, technological deficiency, society polarisation, geostrategic factors and infrastructure – conditions to achieve their own goals.If the desired goals are not achieved with the hybrid methods, the hybrid threats can create conditions for future conflict, when the situation can escalate in hybrid war with significant increase of the armed violence. The modern democratic states should have coordinated coherent approach to understand, detect and respond to hybrid threats as collective interest.