Brussels, Belgium - On the occasion of the fifth meeting of the EU-U.S. Cyber Dialogue in Brussels on 10 September 2018, the European Union (EU) and United States reaffirmed their strong partnership in favour of a global, open, stable and secure cyberspace where the rule of law fully applies, where the same rights that individuals have offline are protected online, and where the security, economic growth, prosperity, and integrity of free and democratic societies is promoted and preserved.
During the dialogue, the EU and United States shared information on developments in their respective cyber strategies, policies, and legislation, including the EU Joint Communication on “Resilience, Deterrence and Defence: Building Strong Cybersecurity for the EU” and the U.S. recommendations on deterrence and international engagement pursuant to the U.S. Executive Order 13800 on “Strengthening the Cybersecurity of Federal Networks and Critical Infrastructure.” Both sides welcomed progress made to increase global capabilities to protect against, detect, deter, and respond to malicious cyber activities and underlined the need for coordination and cooperation in order to safeguard a global, open, stable, and secure cyberspace.
The EU and United States reaffirmed their strong commitment to human rights and fundamental freedoms online and condemned undue restrictions on freedom of expression and censorship in violation of international human rights law. The EU and United States also reaffirmed their strong support for the multi-stakeholder approach to Internet governance and encourage all stakeholders to strengthen existing Internet governance mechanisms, including the Internet Governance Forum as the premier multi-stakeholder venue for dialogue on Internet-related public policy issues. The EU and United States also underlined the need to address the digital divide to enable economic growth, social development, and increasing cyber resilience towards cyber threats and stressed their commitment to continued capacity building assistance to this end, including through the Global Forum for Cyber Expertise.
The EU and United States endorsed the work to date by the UN Group of Governmental Experts on Developments in the Field of Information and Telecommunications in the Context of International Security (UNGGE), including its landmark 2013 and 2015 reports, and look forward to a new UNGGE to take that work forward, including on the issue of how existing international law applies to State behaviour in cyberspace. The EU and United States reaffirmed their adherence to certain voluntary, non-binding norms of responsible State behaviour in cyberspace during peacetime. In addition, both sides welcomed important, ongoing work and progress on the development and implementation of cyber confidence building measures to reduce misperceptions and the risk of escalation stemming from the use of information and communications technologies. The EU and United States reaffirmed the importance of the Budapest Convention as a basis for national legislation and international cooperation in fighting cybercrime.
In order to keep cyberspace stable and secure, the EU and United States are committed to hold States accountable for actions that are contrary to the growing consensus on responsible state behaviour in cyberspace. The EU and United States affirmed the need to strengthen their cooperation in this regard, through both continued dialogue and practical collaborative efforts.
