Q4/2019 - 74th UN General Assembly

New York, October – December 2019

Resolutions (1st – 3rd Committee), December 2019, New York

The 74th Session of the UN General Assembly adopted six resolutions concerning Internet-related issues in December 2019. The resolutions were negotiated in the Committees of the General Assembly:

  • The 1st Committee of the UN General Assembly (Disarmament and International Security) discussed three texts:

    • The UN Resolution 74/29 “Developments in the field of information and telecommunications in the context of international security” welcomes that negotiations were started in the OEWG and the 6th UNGGE as two separate and mutually independent mechanisms that aim at the same goal, which is fostering peace and security[1];

    • The UN Resolution 74/28 “Advancing responsible State behaviour in cyberspace in the context of international security” recommends the 6th UNGGE to be guided by the results of the 2013 and 2015 reports, to identify new threats and to develop measures that guarantee an “open, interoperable, reliable and secure information and communications technology environment consistent with the need to preserve the free flow of information“[2];

    • The UN-Resolution 74/367 “Role of Science and Technology in the Context of International Security and Disarmament” refers to the work of the GGE LAWS and invites the UN member states to closely cooperate with experts from industry, the research community and civil society and gain better understanding of the impact developments in science and technology have on international security and disarmament[3]

  • The 2nd Committee of the UN General Assembly (Economic & Financial) negotiated the UN Resolution 74/378 “Information and Communications Technologies for Sustainable Development”. The resolution is a continuation of the resolutions adopted since 2006 concerning the implementation of the decisions of the UN World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) of 2005. As in the previous years, the resolution is based on a report of the Commission on Science and Technology for Development (UNCSTD) responsible for the WSIS Review, which was submitted via ECOSOC:
    • The 2019 resolution does not cover any new aspects. It confirms the need to close the still prevailing digital divide between developed and developing countries. The focus of the resolution is consistently shifting to economic aspects. It requests innovative “public-private partnerships” and a stronger commitment of the private sector. The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) is expected to assume a special role. The UNCTAD initiative “eTrade for All“ and the work of the Intergovernmental Group of Experts on E-commerce and the Digital Economy as well as the Africa eCommerce Week, the Asia e-Commerce Week scheduled for 2021 and the UNESCO program “Information for All” are highly recognised.
    • The role of the Internet Governance Forum (IGF) is rated more positively than before; however, greater participation of governments and stakeholders from developing countries is requested. For years, the IGF had been directly linked to the politically controversial process of so-called enhanced cooperation. After the two UNCSTD working groups on enhanced cooperation (WGEC1 and WGEC2) failed to produce results, the 2019 resolution refrains from formally linking the two processes, regrets however that the WGECs were unable to reach consensus. The resolution reaffirms the continued importance of "enhanced cooperation", which is considered necessary to enable governments to carry out their roles and responsibilities in international Internet policy issues on an equal footing. Concrete proposals on how this enhanced cooperation should be designed and implemented in the future are not made4].
    • The UN Resolution 74/378 advocates the creation of transparent, predictable, independent and non-discriminatory regulatory and legal systems, at the same time emphasising that the multistakeholder principle is mandatory and useful.  [5].
    • Multiple references are made to the sustainable development goals (SDGs) of the United Nations, which are planned to be reached by 2030. There is not yet any reference to the review of the WSIS Tunis Agenda (WSIS+20) scheduled for 2025. “Information and Communications Technologies for Sustainable Development” will be negotiated again at the 75th Session of the UN General Assembly in autumn 2020. It has not yet been decided whether the preparations for WSIS+20 will be addressed at this event. Among other things, it will depend on how the UN is going to deal with the follow-up and the recommendations of the UN High-Level Panel on Digital Cooperation. 
  • The 3rd Committee of the UN General Assembly (Social, Humanitarian & Cultural Issues) adopted two Internet-related resolutions:
    • After a very controversial discussion, the 74th Session of the UN General Assembly adopted UN Resolution 74/401 "Countering the use of information and communications technologies for criminal purposes" on 27 December. The resolution calls on the UN to create a new UN committee with the mandate to draw up a UN convention on cybercrime.

      The Resolution, which had been initiated by Russia, was adopted with only 77 affirmative votes, 60 against and 33 abstentions[6]. The UN Resolution must be looked at against the background of long years of debate about the role of the UN in the fight against cybercrime. Western states represented and still represent the view that the Budapest Cybercrime Convention, which was negotiated in 2001 under the umbrella of the Council of Europe, is a sufficient international instrument to combat cybercrime. New developments could be regulated in additional protocols. The Council of Europe Convention is open for signature to all UN members. However, of the 193 UN members, only 79 states have ratified the Budapest Convention.

      Large states like Russia and China, which are both members of the UN Security Council, but also India and Brazil reject the Budapest Convention. These countries argue that even though they agree to the principles of the Budapest Convention, not having been involved in the drafting of the text in 2001, they prefer working out a new UN convention of their own. Russia and China have additional reservations about specific provisions of Article 32 of the Budapest Convention. They consider them incompatible with their understanding of cyber sovereignty. [7].

      In 2017, Russia had submitted a text proposal for a UN Cybercrime Convention to the 3rd Committee. This text, the so-called “Minsk Convention” was largely based on a multilateral agreement to combat cybercrime of some successor states of the former Soviet Union. The Western states saw the new draft introduced by Russia as an instrument that would not only combat classical cybercrime but could also serve as a means of globally sanctioned Internet censorship.

      According to the new UN Resolution 74/401 the intergovernmental committee of experts planned to be established shall convene for its inaugural session in August 2020. Operational work can thus hardly be expected to start before 2021. In view of the voting patterns and the controversial interests involved, it is highly unlikely that the new committee will achieve results quickly. However, it is equally unlikely that the number of ratifications of the Budapest Convention will increase substantially after the UN decision. Thus, there will be a gap in international law for a longer period of time in the fight against cybercrime at international level. This means that the responsibility of regional organisations as well as of Interpol and Europol, to mention only a few, increases.

    • The UN Resolution 74/400 “Countering Child Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse Online“ calls upon the UN member statesto criminalize and prosecute more vigorously the sexual exploitation and abuse of children on the Internet. The UN Office on Drugs and Crimes is requested to assist UN states in prosecuting such crimes. The states are called upon to join the “UN Convention against Transnational Organized Crime” and in particular to sign the “Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, especially Women and Children”[8]. 

    • The 74th Session of the UN General Assembly did not adopt any resolutions on the freedom of expression and privacy in the digital age.

Preparations for the 75th Anniversary of the United Nations, October 2019, New York

On 24 October 2019, UN Secretary-General António Guterres announced a global dialogue in preparation of the 75th anniversary of the founding of the United Nations (24 October 2020). This dialogue will also include the issues raised in the report of the High-Level Panel on Digital Cooperation, which was appointed by the UN Secretary-General. Two proposals in this report titled "The Age of Digital Interdependence" (June 2019) are particularly relevant:

  • First, it requests the UN General Assembly to adopt a “Global Commitment on Digital Cooperation” on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the United Nations.
  • Second, it requires a mechanism for optimising the development of Internet-related policies to be developed by then.

On 24 November 2019, a discussion on this issue, chaired by UN Under-Secretary-General Fabrizio Hochschild, took place at the 14th IGF in Berlin. Among other things, it provided concrete proposals on how the IGF could be developed into an IGF+. Fabrizio Hochschild was entrusted by UN Secretary-General Guterres with the preparations for the 75th anniversary of the UN. At this anniversary, it is planned to also adopt a long-term UN strategy for dealing with world problems, with a view to the year 2045, when the United Nations will turn one hundred years. However, the procedure for drawing up the relevant documents is still unclear[9].

Mehr zum Thema
Q4/2019UN
  1. [1] UN-Resolution 74/29, 12. Dezember 2019: „1. Welcomes the launch of the negotiation process in the format of the United Nations Open-ended Working Group on Developments in the Field of Information and Telecommunications in the Context of International Security, and also welcomes the Group of Governmental Experts on Developments in the Field of Information and Telecommunications in the Context of International Security; 2. Underlines that the Open-ended Working Group and the Group of Governmental Experts are important independent mechanisms under United Nations auspices, which should conduct their work in accordance with their mandates in a constructive and pragmatic manner, adding to each other’s efforts, and their results should contribute to the implementation of the tasks of maintaining international peace and security in the use of ICTs;“ in: https://www.un.org/en/ga/74/resolutions.shtml
  2. [2] UN-Resolution, 74/28, 12. Dezember 2019: „Calls upon Member States:(a) To be guided in their use of information and communications technologies by the 2010,1 20132 and 20153 reports of the Group of Governmental Experts on developments in the Field of Information and Telecommunications in the Context of International Security; (b) To support the implementation of cooperative measures, as identified in the reports of the Group of Governmental Experts, to address the threats emerging in this field and ensure an open, interoperable, reliable and secure information and communications technology environment consistent with the need to preserve the free flow of information;” in: https://www.un.org/en/ga/74/resolutions.shtml
  3. [3] UN-Resolution 74/367, 12. Dezember 2019: „Welcoming the discussions and progress made by the Group of Governmental Experts on lethal autonomous weapons systems during its 2018 and 2019 sessions, Noting also the discussions within the United Nations and the specialized agencies on developments in the field of information and communications technologies, including in the context of international security, Acknowledging that the accelerating pace of technological change necessitates a system-wide assessment of the potential impact of developments in science and technology on international security and disarmament, with due regard to avoiding duplication and complementing efforts already under way in United Nations entities and in the framework of the relevant international conventions, 1. Invites Member States to continue efforts to apply developments in science and technology for disarmament-related purposes, including the verification of disarmament, arms control and non-proliferation instruments, and to make disarmament-related technologies available to interested States; 2. Calls upon Member States to remain vigilant in understanding new and emerging developments in science and technology that could imperil international security, and underlines the importance of Member States engaging with experts from industry, the research community and civil society in addressing this challenge;” in:
  4. [4] UN-Resolution 74/378, 5. Dezember 2019: „23. Acknowledges the extension of the mandate of the Internet Governance Forum through 2025, as set out in the outcome document of the high-level meeting of the General Assembly on the overall review of the implementation of the outcomes of the World Summit on the Information Society; 24. Recognizes the importance of the Internet Governance Forum and its mandate as a forum for multi-stakeholder dialogue on various matters, as reflected in paragraph 72 of the Tunis Agenda for the Information Society, including discussion of public policy issues related to key elements of Internet governance, and requests the Secretary-General to continue to submit, as part of his annual reporting on the progress made in the implementation of and follow-up to the outcomes of the World Summit on the Information Society at the regional and international levels, information on the progress made in the implementation of the recommendations contained in the report of the Working Group on Improvements to the Internet Governance Forum,13 in particular those on enhancing the participation of developing countries; 25. Stresses the need for the enhanced participation of Governments and stakeholders from all developing countries, in particular the least developed countries, in all meetings of the Internet Governance Forum, and in this regard invites Member States, as well as other relevant stakeholders, to support the participation of Governments and all other stakeholders from developing countries in the Forum itself, as well as in the preparatory meetings; 26. Notes the work of the Working Group on Enhanced Cooperation, established by the Chair of the Commission on Science and Technology for Development as requested by the General Assembly in its resolution 70/125, to develop recommendations on how to further implement enhanced cooperation as envisioned in the Tunis Agenda, and also notes that the Working Group ensured the full involvement of Governments and other relevant stakeholders, in particular from developing countries, taking into account all their diverse views and expertise; 27. Also notes that the Working Group held five meetings between September 2016 and January 2018 at which it discussed inputs from Member States and other stakeholders, as stipulated by the General Assembly in its resolution 70/125; 28. Recalls the report of the Chair of the Working Group,14 which includes references to the full texts of all proposals and contributions, and expresses its gratitude to the Chair and all participants who submitted inputs and contributed to the work of the Working Group; 29. Welcomes the good progress made by the Working Group in many areas and the fact that consensus seemed to emerge on some issues, while significant divergence of views in a number of other issues persisted, and in that regard regrets that the Working Group could not find agreement on recommendations on how to further implement enhanced cooperation as envisioned in the Tunis Agenda; 30. Recognizes the importance of enhanced cooperation in the future, to enable Governments, on an equal footing, to carry out their roles and responsibilities in international public policy issues pertaining to the Internet, and notes the need for continued dialogue and work on the implementation of enhanced cooperation as envisioned in the Tunis Agenda;” in:
  5. [5] UN-Resolution 74/378, 5. Dezember 2019: „37. Also recognizes the importance of the free flow of information and knowledge, as the amount of information distributed worldwide grows and the role of communication becomes all the more important, and acknowledges that the mainstreaming of information and communications technologies in school curricula, open access to data, the fostering of competition, the creation of transparent, predictable, independent and non-discriminatory regulatory and legal systems, proportionate taxation and licensing fees, access to finance, the facilitation of public-private partnerships, multi-stakeholder cooperation, national and regional broadband strategies, efficient allocation of the radio frequency spectrum, infrastructure-sharing models, community-based approaches and public access facilities have in many countries facilitated significant gains in connectivity and sustainable development;” in:
  6. [6] UN-Resolution 74/401, 27. Dezember 2019: „2. Decides to establish an open-ended ad hoc intergovernmental committee of experts, representative of all regions, to elaborate a comprehensive international convention on countering the use of information and communications technologies for criminal purposes, taking into full consideration existing international instruments and efforts at the national, regional and international levels on combating the use of information and communications technologies for criminal purposes, in particular the work and outcomes of the open-ended intergovernmental Expert Group to Conduct a Comprehensive Study of Cybercrime; 3. Also decides that the ad hoc committee shall convene a three-day organizational session in August 2020, in New York, in order to agree on an outline and modalities for its further activities, to be submitted to the General Assembly at its seventy-fifth session for its consideration and approval; 4. Requests the Secretary General to allocate the necessary resources in order to organize and support the work of the ad hoc intergovernmental committee of experts.” in: https://www.un.org/en/ga/74/resolutions.shtml
  7. [7] Budapest Convention on Cybercrime, 23. November 2001: „Article 32 –Trans-border access to stored computer data with consent or where publicly available: A Party may, without the authorisation of another Party: a. access publicly available (open source) stored computer data, regardless of where the data is located geographically; or b. access or receive, through a computer system in its territory, stored computer data located in another Party, if the Party obtains the lawful and voluntary consent of the person who has the lawful authority to disclose the data to the Party through that computer system.” in: https://www.coe.int/en/web/conventions/full-list/-/conventions/rms/0900001680081561
  8. [8] UN-Resolution, 74/400, 18. Dezember 2019, in: https://www.un.org/en/ga/74/resolutions.shtml
  9. [9] UN to launch biggest-ever global conversation on the world's future to mark its 75th anniversary in 2020, New York, 24. Oktober 2019, in: https://www.un.org/en/un75/news-events