OREANDA-NEWS. A special committee of the Australian Senate will investigate possible foreign interference in the country's domestic politics through social networks, including Facebook, Twitter and WeChat. This was announced on Thursday by Reuters.

"The increasing role of fake news and disinformation campaigns poses a tangible and real threat not only in Australia but throughout the world. We must protect our democracy from malicious foreign agents", said Labor opposition member Penny Wong. It's assumed that the results of the committee will be presented no later than May 2022.

Australia has long been dealing with the problem of foreign agents interfering in their internal affairs. Back in 2017, then-Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull introduced laws requiring the registration of foreign lobbyists, which provoked a deterioration in relations between Australia and China. In September 2019, Australian intelligence accused China of a cyber attack against the parliament and a number of major political parties, but China rejected the allegations. In November, the National Security and Intelligence Agency (ASIO) launched an investigation into China’s alleged attempt to introduce its agent into Australia’s parliament.