‘Delhi Declaration’ for responsible state behaviour in cyberspace for G20 countries

The Delhi Declaration outlined a series of commitments to “responsible state behaviour in cyberspace” for G20 member countries

Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Dr. Rajesh Pant, the National Cybersecurity Coordinator, on June 5, outlined a draft of what he called the “Delhi Declaration,” a series of commitments to “responsible state behaviour in cyberspace” for G20 member countries, drawn from existing non-binding norms that they have already signed onto under United Nations auspices.

If adopted, G20 countries would commit to “not damage critical infrastructure or other essential … systems; commit to cooperate, mitigate and investigate cyber incidents, and other malicious activities in cyberspace, in particular when it comes to ransomware; commit to protect and not disrupt software supply chains; commit to respect international law and rule of law in cyberspace; and finally commit to protecting the humanitarian sector,” Dr. Pant said, reading out the draft.

Dr. Pant, who was speaking at a G20 business event on cybersecurity, said that Microsoft Corporation helped draft the declaration.

“Vulnerabilities [in cyberspace] will continue to exist as long as we depend on systems that are based on hardware and software, and increasing software-isation,” Dr. Pant said. “If vulnerabilities continue, then cyber attacks will continue to take place at a pace faster than what they’re doing now, because of various reasons, including the latest generative Artificial Intelligence (AI).”

Industries will have to “build resilience,” Dr. Pant said, by building a competent “cyber workforce,” establishing standard operating procedures for firms, and with international cooperation.