Participation of the PABSEC International Secretariat, in the Stratcom Summit’23, Istanbul, 24-25 November 2023
Mr. Daniel DULCA, PABSEC Deputy Secretary General, participated in the Stratcom Summit ‘23, under the theme “Global Response to Hybrid Threats: Stability. Security. Solidarity.”, which was hosted by the Directorate of Communications of the Presidency of the Republic of Türkiye, in Istanbul, on 24-25 November 2023.
The event was attended by government authorities, eminent academics, representatives of media and NGOs, security and cybersecurity experts.
Opening remarks were made by: Prof. Dr. Fahrettin Altun, Communications Director of the Republic of Türkiye; H. E. Dr. Hakan Fidan, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Türkiye; H. E. Ambassador Akif Cagatay Kilic, Chief Advisor to the President of the Republic of Türkiye. Video messages were presented to the participants, by H. E. Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the President of the Republic of Türkiye and by Ms. Melissa Fleming, Under-Secretary-General for Global Communications of the United Nations.
The Summit comprised several important panels, such as: Hybrid Threats in the Age of Uncertainty, Building International Resilience, Public Communication in the Digital Age, Building Resilient Brands Countering Global Threats, New Fronts to Hybris Threats, Communication Complexities in Hybrid Crises, New Conflict Areas, Crises and Risks at 21st Century.
This event provided an international platform that gave the opportunity to facilitate a global discussion on hybrid threats, crisis communication, countering disinformation and artificial intelligence.
Several ideas were underlined in the Summit, as follows:
- Hybrid threats cross boundaries and require cooperation, coordination, and global response.
- Governments need to identify fragile areas, increase resilience and deterrence, and strengthen coordination and cooperation, to combat such threats.
- Strategic communication is a prerequisite for combating hybrid threats, comprising crisis communication, public relations and diplomacy, civil preparedness, intensifying coordination, and the fight against disinformation.
- The States, together with the international organizations and other important actors, strive to increase global opportunities for combating these threats, by strengthening their strategic communication structures, also the cooperation and coordination mechanisms.
The successful implementation of global and regional goals requires enhancing the partnership relations and the achievement of the common goals is possible only by the active participation of governments, parliaments, workers, civil society, private sector and other stakeholders.