Following the recent consensus adoption of the Final Report of the Open-Ended Working Group on security of and in the use of information and communications technologies (OEWG on ICTs), and the expected impending formal approval of the Final Report by the UN General Assembly, the Centre for International Law (CIL) is convening this timely seminar to analyse its key outcomes and the way ahead.

While some celebrated the quick consensus on the report and the creation of a new, permanent UN dialogue on cyber issues, others noted that it made limited progress on the development of international law issues. Critics argue that, despite extensive discussions, the final report contained modest references to the substantive discussions that took place in the OEWG on States’ understanding of how international law applies in cyberspace.

This seminar will engage in a critical analysis of the key contributions of the OEWG process to the normative discussion on the application of international law to States’ use of ICTs. This includes a discussion of the reasons for the eventual omission of the proposed dedicated group on international law in the future new mechanism and its implications for advancing States’ understanding of the application of international law in cyber as well as the future of cyber norms and stability.  In addition, the seminar will share insights from the non-governmental stakeholder perspectives on the OEWG process as well as the critical emerging issues of concern that merit deeper engagement and discussions.

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