#hybrid-threats

#hybrid-threats

The 62nd Munich Security Conference opened on 13 February 2026 in Munich, Germany, and this year's gathering feels different from past editions. For decades, Munich was about jets, troops, and treaties. Today, cyber and AI are no longer peripheral; they are part of the architecture of security itself. Cyber risks, digital infrastructure, and emerging technologies like AI now sit alongside tanks and treaties on the agenda as European leaders try to make sense of a world where digital threats and geopolitical tensions are deeply intertwined.

Speaking during a visit to Latvia on Monday, Wadephul called for "better cooperation between Baltic nations," including Germany, including better maritime surveillance and more effective deterrence. "We want to take action against ships whose flag status is unclear," he said. "We must use all the possibilities offered by maritime law to stop such ships." His Latvian counterpart, Baiba Braze, concurred, saying: "All loopholes that are being exploited by Russia to carry out these operations must be closed."

On the instructions of President Donald Trump, the United States is withdrawing from international organizations that focus on cybersecurity and hybrid threats. There are concerns within the cybersecurity sector that this decision could undermine global resilience to digital threats. As reported by Computing, the US government claims that these partnerships are not sufficiently effective and are not in line with national interests.

The Chief will describe the increasingly complex and interconnected nature of global threats, ranging from technological disruption and hybrid threats to terrorism and information manipulation. Mastery of technology must infuse everything we do. Not just in our labs, but in the field, in our tradecraft, and even more importantly, in the mindset of every officer. We must be as comfortable with lines of code as we are with human sources, as fluent in Python as we are in multiple languages ...

Across Europe we are witnessing an escalation in hybrid threats - from physical through to cyber - designed to weaken critical national infrastructure, undermine our interests and interfere in our democracies all for the advantage of malign foreign states,

"It's not a question of if, only of when," he said, according to The Financial Times, adding that both drones and cyber threats are now evolving faster than anyone can keep up.