Today, Estonia organised the first-ever formal meeting on cybersecurity in the history of the UN Security Council. The high-level virtual meeting was chaired by Prime Minister Kaja Kallas.
In her speech, Prime Minister Kallas highlighted Estonia’s digital success, but also the possible threats related to cyberspace. “Over the past year, we have seen how cyber operations against the healthcare sector can pose a real and tangible threat,” said Kallas. “Disruption of critical infrastructure, such as the medical system, energy, or water supply, can have a devastating effect on the functioning of the state and people’s lives.”
Izumi Nakamitsu, UN Under-Secretary-General and High Representative for Disarmament Affairs, briefed the Security Council. The open debate provided an opportunity to raise awareness of existing intergovernmental agreements and show that the Security Council takes issues concerning cyberspace seriously.
According to Prime Minister Kallas, it is necessary to ensure that countries follow the mutually agreed rules in cyberspace. One of Estonia’s goals is to reinforce the understanding that international law and the norms of responsible behaviour of states also apply in cyberspace. These elements, together with confidence-building measures and capacity building, are part of the global framework for responsible state behaviour which was agreed at the UN, with Estonia being one of its developers. This was reaffirmed by UN member states in the spring of 2021 with two very important cyber consensus reports, which will help to further strengthen and enhance cyberspace regulation. Kallas also pointed out that international humanitarian law also applies in cyberspace.
The prime minister emphasised that countries cannot reduce cyber threats alone. “The Internet and technology more broadly involve many actors. Tackling cyber threats requires cooperation with the private sector, civil society, and academia. Global efforts must be accompanied by regional activities and capacity building to address cyber threats. Estonia also prioritises bridging the digital divide, which must go hand in hand with protecting human rights in cyberspace,” Kallas added.
Cybersecurity is one of Estonia’s priorities during its elected membership of the UN Security Council. Today’s meeting helped to leave a historic mark for the future. Estonia took the first step already last year by organising an informal Arria-formula meeting on cybersecurity, which brought together 60 countries and organisations.
The meeting can be watched on the UN WebTV http://webtv.un.org/ and on the official YouTube channel of the UN https://www.youtube.com/user/unitednations.
Speech by the prime minister (in English): https://valitsus.ee/uudised/peaminister-kaja-kallase-kone-uro-julgeolekunoukogu-kuberjulgeoleku-istungil-29062021
Photos: https://www.flickr.com/photos/stenbockimaja/albums/72157719471533788
