OTTAWA, ON (October 27, 2021): The COVID-19 pandemic has only heightened geostrategic competition, with a rise in tensions most acute in the Indo-Pacific. Security challenges are dynamic in this new era and not confined to the traditional domains of conflict. Indo-Pacific states are amongst the leaders of this digital age, spurring the growth of technological developments in a range of areas, including 5G and artificial intelligence.
The malign use of cyber capabilities has also been on frequent display. Several key elections, including ones in the United States and Taiwan, have demonstrated how certain actors are looking to disrupt and interfere with democratic processes. Misinformation and information warfare, in addition to other cyber-attacks, present a significant risk to a free and open Indo-Pacific and beyond.
In this context, Canada still lacks a well-considered and clearly articulated framework for addressing immediate security needs and planning for longer-term requirements. A cybersecurity gap insidiously and routinely undermines Canadian safety, security, and prosperity. Canada needs a coherent vision and comprehensive policy for cybersecurity that actively and aggressively deters aggression and defends our interests.
To shed light on these issues, MLI hosted an event with experts from likeminded countries to discuss the cybersecurity challenges facing the Indo-Pacific. Speakers at this event included: Ambassador Kawamura Yashuhisa, Japan’s ambassador to Canada; Richard Fadden, former national security advisor to the prime minister of Canada; Motohiro Tsuchiya, dean and professor of Faculty and Policy Management at Keio University in Japan; Ainikki Riikonen, research assistant at the Center for a New American Security’s Technology and National Security Program; Rafal Rohozinski, founder of the SecDev group; and Bart Hogeveen, head of cyber capacity building at Australian Strategic Policy Institute’s International Cyber Policy Centre.
We are pleased to release an edited transcript of the presentations and discussion from this event. Read the commentary by clicking the button below.
