Do We Trust China-Russia’s Cyber Nonaggression Pact?

Do We Trust China-Russia’s Cyber Nonaggression Pact?

This post is also available in: heעברית (Hebrew)

Nonaggression pacts signed between countries in the past, such as the Ribbentrop-Molotov agreement between the USSR and Nazi Germany, were meant to prevent a war that would cause damage to lives and property. Since the information revolution in the 1950s, however, new kinds of war have been created, among them the cyber warfare. The goal of such warfare is to damage the enemy’s computerized systems – but it now seems that that, too, can be prevented.

At the start of May, Russia and China have signed a bilateral agreement of cooperation in information security. The agreement details joint steps that the two governments promise to take, including exchanging information and increasing cooperation in science and academia. This is actually Russia and China’s realization of their vision for information security in the cyber space, which is in many aspects different from the West’s vision.

Some have viewed this agreement simply as a political act at a time of high tension with the United States and Europe and claim that this is just a reaction to the West’s growing pressure on Russia due to its actions in Ukraine. However, a deeper look at the matter reveals that this agreement is a step in a series of earlier diplomatic initiatives between both countries.

Back in 2009, Russia and China have signed an agreement on cooperation in the field on international information security. Later, in 2011, both countries have presented the U.N. with an international code of conduct for information security. These initiatives were meant, in fact, to promote the two countries’ views on cyber security in international debates. This new bilateral agreement is no exception, then.

The agreement defines cyber threats in a vague and broad matter, as trasfering information which could risk the political, social and economic systems of the country and its cultural, spiritual and moral environment. This definition has raised the West’s concerns that China and Russia will use these clauses to limit the free flow of information online even further.

The document also calls to establish a multilateral and democratic internet management system which works transparently and gives the countries and their government a larger role in managing it. Needless to say that the principle of controling the internet is strictly against the West’s model. But what is special in this current agreement is the impressive emphasis on cooperation. The agreement states in extraordinary detailing the concrete steps towards cooperation, whereas former initiatives left that area fairly vague.

The most interesting clause presents an agreement for nonaggression, in which Russia and China both, for the first time, offer to avoid “computer attacks” on each other. The language of the clause, however, is unclear and uses phrases that can be interpreted in a number of ways, such as the phrase “misuse”.

It is plausible, given Russia and China’s activity in the cyber space – against each other as well,  for the commitments stated in the agreement to be considered shady at best. In the end, the agreement itself is only a first step and what will really count for anything is how it will be put to use. We can only wait and see whether the future of this agreement holds a similar one to that of Ribbentrop-Molotov.

Subscribe to our newsletter.