Russia and China sought to promote the concept of “Internet sovereignty”—the notion that states should exercise complete control over their digital ecosystems.
Western countries, including the United States and the European Union, pushed back, arguing for governance models grounded in universal, rights-based standards.
The final inclusion of human rights law as a core principle within the Global Digital Compact marks a victory for the Western approach. Both Russia and Argentina dissociated themselves from the Compact, endangering efforts to preserve an open Internet.
Moscow has long opposed frameworks constraining its ability to regulate online content or control its Internet infrastructure. While the Kremlin frames its position as a defense of sovereignty, it seeks in practice to shield itself from international accountability on censorship and digital surveillance.
Argentina’s dissociation represents a wide unease in the Global South. Developing countries resist global frameworks perceived as encroaching on national autonomy. If others follow Argentina’s lead, the fragile consensus underpinning the Digital Compact could collapse, turning future negotiations into a struggle.
The new Digital Compact builds on a long legacy of UN involvement with the Internet. Back in 2001, the UN General Assembly passed a resolution creating the World Summit on the Information Society. This gave rise to the Internet Governance Forum — a multi-stakeholder platform that brings together governments, civil society, and the tech community.
While the Internet Governance Forum has been instrumental in fostering dialogue, the rapid development of artificial intelligence and rising geopolitical competition convinced UN Secretary-General António Guterres that it was insufficient to meet new challenges. He put forward the concept of a new Global Digital Compact as a way to bridge the digital divide, promote ethical AI, and align global technology policies with the Sustainable Development Goals.
Although international human rights law now stands as a foundational pillar of the Global Digital Compact, the battle for digital governance is far from over. The Compact remains non-binding. Russia and Argentina are expected to challenge the implementation of these principles, setting the stage for future negotiations over “UN-agreed language” on Internet governance and other digital policies.
By acknowledging the role of the UN General Assembly in digital governance, Russia and China succeeded in imposing a shift away from multi-stakeholder governance toward state-centric control, threatening to replace human rights-based frameworks with models prioritizing national sovereignty. This could empower authoritarian regimes.
For the EU, the Global Digital Compact presents a strategic opportunity to champion democratic values and human rights in the digital space, particularly in competition with China’s state-centric governance model. One promising avenue lies in expanding the bloc’s Global Gateway initiative to multiply digital infrastructure projects in the developing world.
The new UN Digital Compact offers both promise and peril. It provides a roadmap for narrowing the digital divide, advancing AI ethics, and aligning technology policy with sustainability. Success will depend on the ability to navigate geopolitical tensions and prevent authoritarians from hijacking its governance mechanisms.
The UN has postponed defeat. But the fight for an open, interoperable Internet — one grounded in human rights and democratic principles — has only just begun.
Anda Bologa is an independent expert on AI and digital policy, Central European foreign policy, and transatlantic affairs. She was a Denton Fellow at the Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA).
Bandwidth is CEPA’s online journal dedicated to advancing transatlantic cooperation on tech policy. All opinions expressed on Bandwidth are those of the author alone and may not represent those of the institutions they represent or the Center for European Policy Analysis. CEPA maintains a strict intellectual independence policy across all its projects and publications.
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