Secur(itis)ed Cyberspace: The Promise and the Risk of Digital Sovereignty

The Islamic Republic of Iran has held its citizens in a total internet blackout for 80 days and counting. Russia has intensified its efforts to assert control over all aspects of the online world. And China has long had its own cyberspace with limited access to the outside world. To enable this, these countries have spent years building the necessary infrastructure on the one hand, and political ground on the other, including through the language of digital sovereignty and security.

Yet, the idea(l) of digital sovereignty has spread far beyond authoritarian contexts and has gained a foothold in the public debate across continents. Central to this debate is reducing dependencies on US and Chinese tech, which forms the backbone of processes with enormous influence on the analogue world, among them critical infrastructure, transportation, law enforcement and military. These platforms also play a crucial role in shaping, or at least providing a space for, public debate. This dependency is felt even more acutely in the Global Majority, where technological transformation risks reinforcing colonial hierarchies. 

But the push for digital sovereignty raises urgent challenges. While justifying these moves with protecting citizens and securing state interests, they may lead to increased surveillance, open doors to authoritarian forces to shut down public debate, and, as we have already witnessed, even enable and legitimise internet blackouts.

Fundamentally, this debate raises the question of whose sovereignty and whose security are to be protected: that of individuals and communities, or that of states? The issue is further shaped by context: while Europeans may, at least for now, benefit from systems of checks and balances, the same cannot be said for many other parts of the world.

With the 9th Human Security Salon, we aim to open up a critical conversation on digital sovereignty. Where does the pursuit of sovereignty enhance security and where does it risk enabling repression? How do different political contexts shape its implications, and what can cases like Iran or Russia tell us about its limits and dangers? And as AI continues to intensify this debate, can we imagine alternatives that move beyond both corporate dominance and state overreach towards more democratic and accountable internet governance, or, as Hannah Arendt suggested, must we renounce sovereignty altogether if we wish to be free?  

Speakers:

• Claudia Reinprecht, Deputy Director, Head of Section for Transport, Telecommunications, Digital, Tech and Innovation Diplomacy, Austrian Foreign Ministry
• Farzaneh Badiei, PhD, Founder of Digital Medusa, a digital governance research and advocacy firm (Online)
• Mirko Swillus, Engineering Consultant and the Former Head of Sovereign Tech Fund, Germany

Please make sure to register by 7 June. You will receive more details and the Zoom link for virtual participation after registration.

If you have any questions, feel free to contact giorgi.ptskialadze@at.boell.org