14 DAY TRIAL // In a joint statement published by the White House, the president of the United States and the one of the Russian Federation have announced their plans to cooperate in the field of Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) security. The two countries signed an agreement at the G8 summit in Northern Ireland.
“We recognize that threats to or in the use of ICTs include political-military and criminal threats, as well as threats of a terrorist nature, and are some of the most serious national and international security challenges we face in the 21st Century,” the statement reads.
“We affirm the importance of cooperation between the United States of America and the Russian Federation for the purpose of enhancing bilateral understanding in this area. We view this cooperation as essential to safeguarding the security of our countries, and to achieving security and reliability in the use of ICTs that are essential to innovation and global interoperability.”
Several steps will be taken to increase transparency, strengthen relations and build confidence between the countries.
One of these steps refers to the creation of a mechanism that allows the US and Russia to share information on threats to critical infrastructure systems.
Another step is the facilitation of the exchange of urgent communications between the countries’ Nuclear Risk Reduction Centers in an effort to reduce the risk of “misperception, escalation and conflict.”
A direct communication link will be established between the White House and Kremlin so that high-level officials can manage potentially dangerous cyber security-related situations.
The US and Russia will create a bilateral working group that will meet on a regular basis to discuss threats to ICT systems. The group will be created within the next month and will start its activities right away.
“These steps are necessary in order to meet our national and broader international interests. They are important practical measures which can help to further the advancement of norms of peaceful and just interstate conduct with respect to the use of ICTs,” the joint statement reads.