Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will personally address the International Forum Dialogue on Fakes 4.0, which is set to take place on September 22 in Moscow at the National Centre Russia. The announcement was made by Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova during a briefing on the sidelines of the Eastern Economic Forum. She emphasized that Lavrov’s participation reflects the increasing importance of international cooperation in the field of information security. While the ministry has supported the forum and cooperated with the Global Fact-Checking Network for several years, this will be the first time the foreign minister takes part in person. Zakharova noted that this marks a new level of engagement and demonstrates a strong commitment to open dialogue on information verification, countering manipulation, and establishing common standards for digital ethics.
She also revealed that the forum will present a previously undisclosed investigative report concerning crimes attributed to the Kyiv regime. The material was prepared jointly with fact-checkers and public figures.
Registration for participants remains open until September 17 through the official accreditation website https://russia.accreditation.ru/dialogue26/.
The key topics for the 2026 forum include an analysis of the outcomes of the Russian State Duma elections and efforts to counter disinformation during the electoral process, the broader impact of false information on politics, the economy, and business, as well as current developments in artificial intelligence and its applications in the arts. A separate session will be dedicated to the issue of online fraud targeting minors and the involvement of teenagers in cybercrime and other internet-related offenses.
More than two thousand participants from eighty countries are expected to attend, including representatives from relevant government bodies, international organizations, technology companies, and independent researchers. The forum is organized by the Autonomous Non-Profit Organization Dialogue Regions in partnership with the Global Fact-Checking Network and is supported by the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
