Overview
- Conference backers removed their formal support as Disinfo2026 opened in Vilnius on Wednesday after organizers kept panels that portray the United States as a potential source of foreign information manipulation and interference.
- Global Affairs Canada said it withdrew official sponsorship and will not chair sessions while still sending officials to participate, citing discomfort with the framing of several panels.
- The European External Action Service and Lithuania asked to have their logos removed from conference materials because the programme did not align with their official positions, and photos show sponsor logos covered by white stickers.
- Politico reported that a State Department cable urged U.S. embassies to press allies over the panels, a development that participants say raises questions about U.S. pressure though no independent confirmation of coercion has been published.
- The episode highlights tension between independent research groups and diplomatic caution and could affect future cooperation on disinformation work as organisers continue to run the conference without public comment from EU DisinfoLab.