DEMYSTIFYING CYBER SOVEREIGNTY
Defining cyber sovereignty, in the context of the Westphalian concept of state sovereignty, is an extremely complex exercise that requires global deliberation. SYNERGIA FOUNDATION R E S E A RCH
T E A M
This article is based on the 114th Synergia Forum titled ‘Demystifying Cyberspace Sovereignty’.
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he concept of state sovereignty, which can be traced back to the Westphalian Peace Treaty of 1648, is an unequivocal principle in international law. Each State has exclusive sovereignty over its territory, a space that includes its geographical territory, its citizens and national assets. The Treaty has not only established the territorial delimitation of state authority, but also the principle of non-intervention.
The UN Charter is itself based on the principle of sovereignty as guaranteed in Article 21, which speaks of the States and the sovereign, as well as equality and freedom from intervention by other States (articles 2, 4 and 7). However, as human civilisation has evolved from one stage to another - agriculture, industrial and information - the disruptions have been so profound that the entire connotation of national sovereignty had undergone transformation. When mankind transitioned to the Industrial Age from the Agricultural era, human enterprise had extended beyond terrestrial zones to the sea and aerospace. Accordingly, the concept of territorial waters, exclusive economic zones and national airspace were recognised and ratified by international bodies. With the dawn of the Information Age, however, it became clear that the cyber world did not occupy any specific physical space, making it difficult to delineate
All major countries are taking huge strides towards strengthening their deterrence capacities in cyberspace. Military commanders worldwide are talking of projecting power into the cyberspace, because only on acquiring such power can they enforce responsible behavior in this space. the sovereignty of nations. However, most nations extended the principle of sovereign equality to cyberspace, as per the UN Charter. Fast forward to the 21st century, and today we have some interesting interpretations of sovereignty It applies to not only physical territory and people, but in some ways to body politics too and can be linked to terms like autonomy, absolute power over a particular space, resisting/constraining external influences etc. Cyber sovereignty is a strong, yet nebulous concept, usually referring to the assertion of state control in the digital realm. However, without a very clearcut definition, many questions abound around the concept and practice of sovereignty in cyberspace.
THE SPECTRUM OF CYBERSPACE
“Cyberspace is a superset of interconnected information and communication technology, hardware, software processes, services, data and systems. You can view cyberspace from different angles,” says Lt. Gen. Rajesh Pant (Retd), Na-
