US Signs Onto ‘Declaration for the Future of the Internet’

WASHINGTON — The United States joined 60 global partners in signing an agreement to work toward a common vision of the internet of the future that is “open, free, global, interoperable, reliable and secure.” 

The agreement is not legally binding, but the signers, who include President Joe Biden, intend it to be used as a reference for public policymakers, as well as citizens, businesses and civil society organizations.

“We are united by a belief in the potential of digital technologies to promote connectivity, democracy, peace, the rule of law, sustainable development and the enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms,” the declaration states.

The three-page declaration lays out broad goals to allow the internet to reinforce participation in democracy while also maintaining net neutrality, security and reliability. It also asks countries to not “splinter the global internet,” which means blocking certain platforms and websites, a reference to rising authoritarian governments cracking down on the information their citizens can access.

According to the declaration, “The internet should operate as a single, decentralized network of networks — with global reach and governed through the multistakeholder approach, whereby governments and relevant authorities partner with academics, civil society, the private sector, [the] technical community and others.”

It also states that technology should help with “combating climate change and protecting the environment whilst reducing as much as possible the environmental footprint of the internet and digital technologies.”

The broad language doesn’t specify how any particular country or partner should go about reaching these goals, only that those signed onto the agreement will work together. This declaration comes at a time when laws regulating the internet are gaining traction.

The European Commission recently came to an agreement on multiple pieces of legislation that address both the content and competition of tech companies. And in the United States momentum builds for the American Innovation and Choice Online Act, bipartisan tech competition legislation proposed by Sens. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., and Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa.

This comes at a time when Russia is waging war on Ukraine and blocking outside information from its citizens, including blocking Facebook in early March.

Ukraine signed the declaration, but Russia, which has been linked to a variety of cybercrimes, including the 2021 ransomware cyberattack of the Colonial Pipeline, did not.

The 60 countries and global partners that signed the declaration represent nearly every corner of the world including the European Commission to countries such as Albania, Maldives and others. 

After Biden signed the declaration, Cyber Director Chris Inglis led a private discussion with other leaders from those countries that appeared to center on improving cybersecurity as one of the top issues, according to the readout of the call.

“They discussed ways to collaborate to improve cybersecurity and achieve the declaration’s vision of an open, inclusive internet that fosters competition, protects privacy and defends human rights. Participants emphasized the important role of both the public sector and the private sector in achieving cybersecurity outcomes,” the statement said.

Madeline can be reached at [email protected] and at https://twitter.com/ByMaddieHughes