The United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research (UNIDIR) welcomes you to the half-day conference: Towards a More Stable and Secure ICT Environment: Unpacking Inter-State Cooperation.
Cooperation between States is a fundamental pillar of international peace and security, and the digital environment is no exception. The importance of effective and constructive cooperation among States has been highlighted in all of the multilateral processes discussing Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) in the context of international peace and security, including the six iterations of the UN Group of Governmental Experts and, since 2019, two Open-ended Working Groups.
Recognizing the importance of this premise, the conference aims to unpack how the concept of inter-State cooperation can be operationalized in different contexts and for different purposes. It will achieve this objective by providing a platform for structured discussion among State representatives and other relevant experts on concrete examples of good practices in the field of cooperation.
This event will be livestreamed on our YouTube channel (see below):
AGENDA
13.45-14.00 Conference opening
Dr Robin Geiss (Director, UNIDIR)
14.00-14.15 Keynote speech
HE Burhan Gafoor (Chair of the Open-ended working group on security of and in the use of information and communications technologies 2021-2025)
14.15-15.15 Panel 1 – Cooperation for stability and security in the ICT environment
Rules, norms and principles guiding State behaviour in the use of ICT calls for States to cooperate to increase stability and security of the ICT environment. How are States implementing this norm? What kind of cooperation is taking place beyond the OEWG itself? What kind of measures can be developed or applied? What is the interplay between different types of cooperation (e.g. bilateral, regional and international)?
Speakers:
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Mr Artur R. Lyukmanov (Acting Director of the Foreign Ministry’s Department of International Information Security; Russian Federation)
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HE Egriselda Aracely González López (Permanent Representative, Permanent Mission to the UN, New York; El Salvador)
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Ms Ziyan Xu (Third Secretary, Office for Cyber Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs; China)
15.15-15.30 Coffee break
15.30-16.30 Panel 2 – Inter-State cooperation as a confidence-building measure
Confidence-building measures can be effective tools to protect peace and security as they contribute to creating trust and transparency, and therefore reduce the risk of misperception and miscalculation, through sharing and exchanging of information as well as through facilitating communication at the appropriate levels, for example through a dedicated directory of points of contact. What lessons can we learn from practices already existing in this field? What else can be done to promote confidence-building through inter-State cooperation?
Speakers:
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Ms Luo You Clarice Lim (Counsellor, permanent Mission to the UN, Singapore)
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Mr Manuchehr Hojizoda (Deputy Director of the Department of Humanitarian Cooperation, General Political and Social Problems, Executive Committee; Commonwealth of Independent States)
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Ms María Alejandra Costa Prieto (Deputy Permanent Representative, Permanent Mission to the UN and other international organizations in Geneva; Uruguay)
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HE Sovann Ke (Permanent Representative, Permanent Mission to the UN, New York; Cambodia)
16.30-16.45 Comfort break
16.45-17.45 Panel 3 – Inter-State cooperation as an enabler of capacity-building
Capacity-building is an important aspect of cooperation among States aimed at ensuring an open, secure, stable, accessible and peaceful ICT environment and a voluntary act of both the donor and the recipient. In the first progress report of the current OEWG, the value of South-South, South-North, triangular, and regionally focused cooperation was also recalled. What does this mean in practice? How do these different types of cooperation contribute concretely to capacity-building?
Speakers:
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Ms Andrea Martin-Swaby (Unit Head, Cybercrime & Digital Forensics Unit, Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions; Jamaica)
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HE Mohammad Aamir Khan (Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN, New York; Pakistan)
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Ms Nnenna Ifeanyi-Ajufo (Vice Chair, African Union Cyber Security Experts Group; African Union)
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HE Sohail Khan (Deputy Secretary General; Shanghai Cooperation Organization)
17.45-18.00 Recap of the day and conference closing
This final session will provide a short recap of the discussion before concluding the day.
WHERE & WHEN
2 December 2022, 13.45-18.00 CET.
Hybrid format: in-person (Geneva) and online (with livestreaming).
PARTCIPANTS
UNIDIR encourages the participation of representatives and government experts interested in digital technologies in the context of international peace and security.
Support from UNIDIR’s core funders provides the foundation for all of the Institute’s activities. Dedicated financial support for this event was provided by the Government of the Russian Federation.