On the second day of the 13th Global Internet Governance Forum (IGF 2018), Chairman of the State Duma Committee for Information Policy, Information Technology and Communications Leonid Levin spoke at the section, Internet Governance Evolution: A Multi-stakeholder Approach. Levin represented the Russian Internet Governance Forum (RIGF). This section is traditional for the Global IGF; it brings together representatives of national and regional forums. Following the section, a bridging official document will be issued that represents the opinions of all participants in the section.
In his speech, Leonid Levin noted the importance of consolidating the efforts of all countries in providing a secure internet, as well as the need for expert cooperation in countering cyber threats.
Special attention was paid to the Russian experts’ initiatives: “All Russian stakeholders are currently cooperating with foreign agencies, both at the level of corporate interaction, and on the parliamentary level, as well as at the level of law enforcement agencies, and of course, self-regulating organizations. Russia is actively involved in various international organizations, including the intergovernmental group of experts under the UN. Due in large part to Russian efforts, it was possible to outline a concept for the group operation and prepare several key documents,” Levin said.
The politician spoke about the role government agencies currently play in internet governance: “We believe that the role of the governments in the process of discussion is insufficient and we urge increasing the role of state agencies in discussing pressing and sensitive initiatives,” he said, adding that Russia has proposed creating a new international organization to monitor mutual non-aggression in digital space, a sort of “Cyber UN.”
The second day of IGF 2018 also marked the Virtuti Interneti award ceremony for Ambassador Benedicto Fonseca, Director of the Department of Scientific and Technological Affairs of the Ministry of External Relations of Brazil. The order was presented by Marilyn Cade, member of the Executive Committee of the ICANN Commercial Stakeholder Group, and Irina Danelia, Deputy Director of the Coordination Center for TLD .RU/.РФ. They thanked Mr Fonseca for his years of work for the benefit of the entire global internet. “Mr Fonseca has made a great contribution to the Global Forum for Internet Governance and to the development of national and regional initiatives. During his time in office as Ambassador, Brazil has established a global IGF. He also has done a lot to create and promote Net Mundial,” Danelia said.
The Virtuti Interneti Order was established in 2010 by the Coordination Center for TLD .RU/.РФ and was first presented at the First Russian Forum for Internet Governance (RIGF 2010) to Alexey Soldatov, one of the founders of the Russian segment of the internet. Over the years, this award has become a reputable way to honor prominent figures who work with the Russian and global internet.