ASTANA – Astana hosted a Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) forum on July 1, which explored challenges and opportunities around digital diplomacy. The event discussed key areas of digital cooperation among SCO countries and explored ways to build a sustainable model of regional integration based on modern technologies.
Titled SCO in the Age of Digital Diplomacy: Scientific Initiatives for Global Balance, the forum was organized by the Institute for Regional Integration Studies. Photo credit: Institute for Regional Integration Studies
Titled SCO in the Age of Digital Diplomacy: Scientific Initiatives for Global Balance, the forum was organized by the Institute for Regional Integration Studies, a newly established think tank.
As a leader in digital transformation, Kazakhstan proposed initiatives to form a unified digital space, including the development of GovTech, the creation of joint data hubs, and coordination in the field of IT startups.
Su Chang, deputy director of the Department of Strategic Studies at the Institute of East European, Russian, and Central Asian Studies of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, addressed the pressing cybersecurity challenges related to increasing digital connectivity.
“Today, SCO countries face four key challenges in the field of cybersecurity,” said Su. “The first is significant gaps in technological capabilities. With the deepening of technological integration and the intensification of geopolitical competition, the number of cyberattacks on states is steadily increasing.”
She identified imperfect legal frameworks as the second challenge. “Most participating countries have not yet established a fully-fledged mechanism within the framework of cyber governance,” she said.
The third issue, Su explained, is the lack of effective systems to monitor and manage information, which contributes to the spread of misinformation and intensifies challenges related to public opinion in cyberspace.
She also emphasized the need for stronger regional cooperation mechanisms. “Existing limitations stemming from the consensus-based decision-making principle reduce the effectiveness of collective action,” Su said.
Digital diplomacy stands at the intersection of two global scientific trends – digitalization and international relations, said Victoria Khomich, deputy dean of the Faculty of Urban and Regional Development at the Moscow-based Higher School of Economics University.
“Digital diplomacy in the global arena is still in its early stages, since a quarter of a century is, in my opinion, too short a period for a field that requires such close attention in terms of international communications to develop a comprehensive methodological basis and research in this area,” Khomich said.
She drew a parallel between the evolution of digital diplomacy and the SCO, noting that both have undergone similar developments over a comparable timeframe.
“In fact, since its inception, digital diplomacy and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization have been at the same stage of development, but for an international organization such as the SCO, which will mark 25 years of cooperation next year, this is a very serious milestone, meaning that it is already a stable international integration platform that plays a key role in integration processes in Eurasia,” said Khomich.
Since 2018, the SCO has prioritized the exchange of best practices in information and communication technologies, particularly during meetings of the Council of Heads of Member States in China. A key step was the adoption of a strategic concept and action plan for digital cooperation during Uzbekistan’s presidency in 2022.
“In 2024, a SCO digital forum was held in Astana, where intentions were announced to eliminate the digital divide—a key problem that currently hinders the development of digital diplomacy,” said Khomich.
