On the one hand, Techdiplomacy is about making sure the interests, concerns and views of a country are heard and recognised by major technology companies.
An example is the Christchurch Call through which New Zealand and France championed a collaborative approach by governments and tech companies to eliminate terrorist and violent extremist content online. It was followed by several G7 statements calling on social media companies to take up responsibility for their content.
Developing countries and small (island) economies have a great interest in making sure technology companies recognise them as a market worth investing in, for instance in subsea fibre-optic cables and satellite connectivity. But they also need to find ways to make sure any concerns are heard and addressed – such as those of affordability, accessibility and cultural appropriateness.
Techdiplomacy is also about the international negotiations that strengthen and advance international rules, norms, principles and standards related to responsible use of technology issues. Examples include ongoing UN negotiations on ICT security and lethal autonomous weapons systems. At the bilateral level, this also relates to a country’s approach to engaging main vendors for critical pieces of digital infrastructure. For instance, many countries in North America and Europe as well as Australia were concerned about Huawei’s role in future 5G infrastructure.
India, for instance, has made the promotion of its Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) scheme a major component of diplomacy and trade promotion. It offers other emerging economies in Asia and Africa access, support and capacity building to make use of India’s model for digital development. DPI is a flagship export product that Indian techdiplomats – in and outside of government – promote overseas.
On the other hand, techdiplomacy also refers to activities that technology companies undertake to nurture relations with governments, regulators and international organisations. This can include these companies’ government affairs teams (those monitoring regulatory initiatives and leading advocacy campaigns toward policymakers and legislators) as well as global diplomacy teams, such as Microsoft’s representative office, established in 2020, to the United Nations in New York.
As new technologies – such as artificial intelligence - become ever more critical to nation’s economic competitiveness and national security, we can expect the diplomatic surge in technology issues to continue, expand and deepen.
