Highlight 24/2023 – Ensuring cybersecurity in the South Caucus region
Goga Gelitashvili, 29 August 2023
In recent years, digital technologies have developed extremely rapidly. Today, it is impossible to find a government organization or firm that does not have a computer and access to the Internet in the office or workplace, as well as a student who would write a term paper without using it. The growth of cyberspace has influenced the development of technology, communications, international life, and security. Now people can interact and share ideas online, regardless of their location, in real time.
The Internet and technology create opportunities that help humanity in their daily lives and make it easier to achieve great things. Computer technology and the Internet are open resources available to everyone around the world. In particular, it is quite difficult to determine for what purposes a particular resource can be used by a particular person.
In connection with the foregoing, the risk of illegal interference with the operation of various systems and their malicious use increases. First of all, virtual risks are associated with the theft of consumer personal information, and personal and financial data, as well as information about a large organization or government agency, transferred to electronic format, may be at risk.
With a high level of militarization and a slowly evolving culture of peace, the South Caucasus is one of the most explosive places on earth. Because of this, developing a human-centred cybersecurity architecture based on collaboration rather than conflict is critical.
Robust cybersecurity is about technology and funding, but it also depends to a large extent on the political or cultural will in each country and on the level of public participation and openness. Countries in this area are working to ensure the security of their countries in partnership with international experts and adopting their knowledge.
But we see a lack of cooperation in this region. This reality is irrelevant and does not contribute to the perception of the overall security of the region. However, based on the analysis, we can state that there is a country in the region that can lead the process of regional cybersecurity as well as share its practice and experience with neighbouring states to ensure better cybersecurity in the region.
The EU has a very important role in the development of cybersecurity in this region and actively supports the development of the Eastern Partnership countries in every sector. Cybersecurity East was a project that involved all the peoples of the South Caucasus region. It helps countries in the region develop technology and collaborative procedures that strengthen cybersecurity and cyber preparedness in line with EU standards. This project has had a decisive impact on the region and should be continued in the future.
The states of the South Caucasus should better coordinate among themselves on the issue of cybersecurity and set rules in accordance with EU law. This will help countries achieve a level of security that can become the basis of peace in the region and will help these countries become full-fledged members of the European family in the future.
Goga Gelitashvili, Highlight 24/20243 – Ensuring cybersecurity in the South Caucus region, 29 August 2023, available at www.meig.ch
The views expressed in the MEIG Highlights are personal to the authors and neither reflect the positions of the MEIG Programme nor those of the University of Geneva.