STATEMENT BY AMBASSADOR BURHAN GAFOOR, PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE OF THE REPUBLIC OF SINGAPORE TO THE UNITED NATIONS, AT THE THEMATIC DEBATE ON CLUSTER FIVE: OTHER DISARMAMENT MEASURES AND INTERNATIONAL SECURITY, FIRST COMMITTEE, 29 OCTOBER 2019

Mr Chairman,

1          With your permission, I will add a few comments in my national capacity, as Singapore.

2          As a small and highly connected nation, Singapore benefits greatly from technology. But we are also the target of cyber-attacks. This is why cybersecurity is one of the key pillars of our Smart Nation initiative. Our digital economy can only flourish when it is underpinned by a safe and trusted cyberspace.

3          At its heart, cybersecurity is an issue of managing the global commons, which requires a global approach based on international norms and rules. The UN has an important role to play in this regard, and Singapore welcomes the establishment of both the Open-Ended Working Group on Developments in the Field of Information and Telecommunications in the Context of International Security (OEWG), and the Group of Governmental Experts on Advancing Responsible State Behavior in Cyberspace in the Context of International Security (GGE). It is imperative that both processes complement each other’s work, and build on the work of the five previous GGEs established since 2004. We need both processes to succeed and deliver meaningful outcomes. Singapore will contribute actively and constructively to both processes, and we look forward to chairing the OEWG intersessional consultative meeting with industry partners and NGOs in December 2019, as announced by Ambassador Laüber, the Chair of the OEWG.

4          Singapore will also continue to facilitate inclusive conversations between global policy makers, thought leaders, and industry experts on the norms of responsible state behaviour in cyberspace, as well as cybersecurity capacity building and confidence building measures. Singapore organises the annual Singapore International Cyber Week (SICW). We have been doing this since 2016. We have welcomed the participation in recent years of the High Representative for Disarmament Affairs Izumi Nakamitsu, as well as Under-Secretary-General Fabrizio Hochschild, who attended the most recent edition of the conference in September this year.

5          Within ASEAN, Singapore has been supporting capacity building programmes, including through the establishment of the ASEAN-Singapore Cybersecurity Centre of Excellence as an extension of our ASEAN Cybersecurity Capacity Building Programme, to which Singapore is very committed to. We believe that the Centre in Singapore will be an important resource to help countries in our region to better prepare for emerging cyber threats through the sharing of information, best practices, and mutual assistance.

Mr Chairman,

6          Singapore looks forward to working with the international community and all delegations here, to build a rules-based international order for cyberspace, and to realise the benefits of a common and connected digital future.

7          I thank you very much for your attention, Mr Chairman.

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