The target of foreign interference are the fault lines that already exist in society and can be exploited to stir anger and divisiveness, said an expert on Wednesday (Sept 25).

To guard against such threats, countries need to bridge the divides by having dialogues and being open, added Dr Janis Berzins, managing director of the Centre for Security and Strategic Studies at the National Defence Academy of Latvia.

The main conduit for such operations to succeed is anger, he said during a panel discussion on building resilience against foreign interference. “They require a sense that people have been wronged by a system that must be reformed.”

He was speaking at a panel discussion on building resilience against foreign interference at the Parkroyal on Beach Road hotel, as part of the conference on Foreign Interference Tactics and Countermeasures organised by the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies.