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“Freedom of speech is designed to foster legitimate internal debate, not to facilitate state subversion on behalf of a hostile adversary that is at war with us.”—Joni Askola for Bette Dangerous
In multiple reports, I have documented the myriad ways Estonia deals with treason.
The small Baltic country shows enormous guts when dealing with traitors inside its borders. Estonia understands what most countries do not: that pro-Russian politicians and influencers not only threaten national security, but also put their very democracy at risk. Democratic freedoms are exploited by a country that has none.
Finland-based geopolitical analyst Joni Askola’s latest YouTube video offers solid reasoning on why more European countries need to consider banning pro-Russian political parties.
I asked him to share his reasoning with the Bette Dangerous community, and here is what he wrote:
‘Disarming the Kremlin’s internal proxies is the fundamental prerequisite for keeping democracy alive’
Europe faces an escalating threat from Moscow, yet an acute vulnerability remains unaddressed inside European borders: political parties operating as an active Kremlin fifth column inside our state institutions. Crucially, Russia considers itself at war with the West and acts accordingly both in Ukraine and the EU, whereas European democracies do not view themselves as directly at war with Russia. This fundamental asymmetry is our core weakness, and Moscow actively exploits it to subvert our political systems from within.
Defending these foreign proxies under the guise of free speech fundamentally misunderstands the democratic social contract. Freedom of speech is designed to foster legitimate internal debate, not to facilitate state subversion on behalf of a hostile adversary that is at war with us. The European Union rightfully banned Russian state propaganda outlets like RT for deploying targeted influence operations. It is completely illogical to ban RT while permitting domestic politicians who perform the exact same operational function to hold legislative power.
This inconsistency is particularly dangerous because in political psychology and information warfare, supply creates demand. When established political parties mainstream pro-Russian narratives, they normalize foreign influence and actively build an audience for it. Conversely, removing the institutional supply of foreign subversion dismantles the infrastructure that feeds public demand, drastically shrinking the reach of Kremlin influence operations.
This approach is directly grounded in the European doctrine of militant democracy, which dictates that a constitutional system must actively defend itself against forces seeking its dismantling. European courts routinely ban totalitarian or extremist organizations using strict judicial review to prevent executive abuse. Extending this existing legal framework to political vehicles acting on behalf of an aggressive foreign power that poses an existential threat is a necessary act of self-preservation.
Waiting for a unanimous 27-member EU consensus will only result in paralysis. Frontline states in the Nordic-Baltic region and Eastern Europe should lead by establishing national legal precedents to dismantle these proxy networks. Tolerating foreign subversion out of misplaced ideological purity will ultimately leave democracies unable to defend anything else. We are no longer in 2005, and what worked then does not work now. Disarming the Kremlin’s internal proxies is the fundamental prerequisite for keeping democracy alive.—Joni Askola for Bette Dangerous
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His last statement bears repeating:
“Tolerating foreign subversion out of misplaced ideological purity will ultimately leave democracies unable to defend anything else. We are no longer in 2005, and what worked then does not work now. Disarming the Kremlin’s internal proxies is the fundamental prerequisite for keeping democracy alive.”
His point regarding ideological purity resonates — a lawless regime seized power in the US because too few had the guts to apply a wartime lens to what was happening. We were attacked by a foreign adversary working with a Fifth Column inside the US, but were too worried about norms and optics to do anything to stop it.
As Dr. Michael MacKay once told me: “America is really bad at dealing with treason.”
But European nations still have the opportunity to prevent Kremlin-powered politicians from further harming their democracies. They can change the narrative and choose their own future.
France just expelled a Russian propagandist and is tightening social media controls.
But two of its top presidential candidates are Kremlin proxies. Where will their loyalty lie when Russia wages kinetic war in Europe?
As Joni notes: “A constitutional system must actively defend itself against forces seeking its dismantling.”
He asks that the legal framework used to ban Russian state propaganda RT also extend to “political vehicles acting on behalf of an aggressive foreign power that poses an existential threat”, calling it “a necessary act of self-preservation.”
Under his suggested legal framework, JD Vance would be investigated for platforming RT on Rumble.
In a long ago forgotten headline in the Wall Street Journal, it was noted that “Peter Thiel and JD Vance invest in Rumble Video, a platform popular on political right”. Rumble was transformed into a venal Russian propaganda site. And RT, banned in democratic nations for being an arm of Russian military intelligence, was free to stream on Rumble.
In 2024, on the day of the VP debate, RT on Rumble had 23.9 million views of its livestream.
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More about Joni Askola:
Joni Askola is a Finnish PhD candidate, geopolitical analyst, and activist who has lived in various locations, including Russia. He works to combat Russian disinformation, fight against authoritarianism, and defend democracies, both online and through fundraising efforts for Ukraine with an organization called Help99. To support Joni’s latest fundraising for the war effort in Ukraine, go here. You will find his YouTube show here.
You can find his threads on the following socials:
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