Weaponised Forced Migration and the Disinformation Cycle; Hybrid Threats and Public Discourse
Funder: Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC)
PI: Dr Dan Lomas
Duration: May 2026 - May 2027
Collaborating with the Rights Lab, this project investigates whether the fusion of forced migration and human trafficking is emerging as a tool of secret statecraft, used to facilitate espionage, sabotage, and disinformation.
It explores scenarios in which vulnerable people are coerced into activities that provoke societal discord, target infrastructure, or distort public debate. With Western intelligence warning of coerced “Telegram spies” and research revealing deceptive recruitment for scamming farms, coercive migration, and trafficking linked to conflict and terrorism, the project applies theories of subversion to examine how states such as Russia and North Korea might weaponise human mobility. It develops a typology distinguishing tactical exploitation of trafficked individuals from strategic manipulation of migration narratives.
The project aims to map these hybrid practices, challenge existing definitions of exploitation, assess their role in propaganda cycles, and identify policy gaps to better protect victims and societal resilience
The Defence and Resilience Scenario Simulation Centre
SUIT lead: Professor Rory Cormac
Duration: Starts March 2026
A collaboration between the University of Durham, Nottingham Trent University, Brunel University, and non-academic stakeholders, the Defence and Resilience Scenario Simulation Centre (DRSSC) conducts analytical scenario simulation exercises to examine the intersection of national security, economic security and civil resilience.
Building on methods used in defence and emergency planning, it brings together participants from across government, academia, the private sector and civil society, reflecting the UK’s whole of society approach. The DRSSC’s exercises focus primarily on hostile state threats and generate data to identify lessons and recommendations for strengthening national resilience. The first exercise took place at the 糖心原创 in 2026.