Spain and Russia agree to set up joint cybersecurity group

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, left, and his Spanish counterpart Josep Borrell speak during a press conference after a meeting at the foreign ministry in Madrid, Spain, Tuesday, Nov. 6, 2018. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

The foreign ministers of Russia and Spain say they agreed to establish a joint cybersecurity group to keep the malicious spreading of misinformation from damaging relations between their countries.

Spanish Foreign Minister Josep Borrell said he welcomed Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov's proposal for a collaborative effort "to gauge the extent of the problem and analyze it to prevent it from becoming a source of friction."

Lavrov said in Madrid on Tuesday he discussed with Borrell how "some Russian mass media go beyond the limits of their professional activity and create inadmissible interference in other countries' issues."

But Lavrov insisted no evidence has been found of Russian government involvement.

Spanish officials have alleged that a misinformation campaign mainly initiated in Russia was partially to blame for instability in Spain's Catalonia region.