(8th meeting) Open-ended working group on Information and Communication Technology (ICT) - Eleventh Substantive Session

Good morning, distinguished delegates. The 8th meeting of the 11th substantive session of the Open-Ended Working Group on Security of and in the Use of ICTs is now called to order. Distinguished delegates, dear friends, we will continue our discussion under Agenda Item 5 to consider the draft final report which was issued overnight as Document A/AC.292/2025/CRP.1. Before I open the floor for comments on the document that was issued last night, please allow me to make some general remarks to set the context for our discussions First, I want to apologize for the fact that the CRP was made available much later than I had anticipated. My apologies for that. Secondly, the CRP is a very finely balanced document. Package of elements that have been put together to create the balance necessary for us to cross the finish line. In preparing the Conference Room Paper, I have walked a very fine line, almost a tightrope. I have not made extensive changes. to the CRP, and indeed I had said yesterday that in looking at Rev. 2, we will not be able to make extensive changes but surgical amendments and tweaks. That indeed has been my approach to looking at But the few changes I have made in my assessment were needed to make us cross the finish line. I know that there were a range of requests for additional changes, amendments, additions, as well as deletions yesterday. But I thought about them very carefully and decided to take a very surgical and strategic approach to preparing the CRP, fundamentally because the more we add, the more we lose the balance. And therefore, my approach had been very, very surgical and very, very strategic. And I hope that you will be able to appreciate the balance and the adjustments I have made in the context of the need to maintain the overall balance. I've often said before that balance, like beauty, lies in the eyes of the beholder. So it is my hope that you will be able to see the balance in the text From your point of view, it is very clear that for each one of you there will be a degree of disappointment, displeasure, dissatisfaction, and even possibly frustration that your views have not been accommodated. But in creating that overall balance, It is necessary to focus on what will get us across the finish line. So that is the reason why I have been very, very surgical and strategic in making these amendments. Secondly, I want to say that it is not my intention to open the text in CRP for further changes or further negotiations because my concern is that if we entertain the idea of additional adjustments, there will be requests for a range of adjustments which is bound to lead to upsetting the apple cart, so to speak. And because it's a very finely balanced package, any requests for amendments will be met with a counter-request for further amendments, whether they are additions, deletions, modifications. I'm certain of that. So I'd like to appeal to each one of you to resist the temptation to make further proposals or to make requests for further adjustments. I'd also like to urge each one of you to avoid making the search for perfection the enemy of the good. In my assessment, the package that is before us is a crystallization of efforts not just this week, not just these past few months, not just these past few years, but a consolidation of decades of work starting with previous OEWGs and GGE processes, but in this process the report that we have is a crystallization of work that has been done over the years. And therefore, once again, I appeal to each one of you to look at the final report in the context of all previous Annual Progress Reports have been achieved. The first Annual Progress Report— and some of you have been involved in the process, in this process, from the beginning— in the first Annual Progress Report, we made an in-principle decision to establish a global POC directory. That was in In the 2nd Annual Progress Report, we worked on elements and the framework for a Global POC Directory, and we also began the discussions on some guiding principles for Regular Institutional Dialogue in 2023. So the discussions on Regular Institutional Dialogue, Annex I that we are focusing on today, has its roots from the beginning of this process. So in 2023, we started with Guiding Principles for Regular Institutional Dialogue, and last year we adopted Annex C. On modalities, and this year Annex 1 builds on the additional modalities needed. So this has been a 3-year process as far as regular institutional dialogue is concerned. And these processes or discussions over the last few years has been, in my view, very inclusive because every one of you have had the opportunity to put your views across, and we are at a stage where we have to agree on some final additional elements, and therefore we are very close to finalizing the architecture that will enable us to make a smooth and seamless transition to a single-track permanent mechanism. So I wanted to say that the final progress report, which now contains a CRP document, is not something that has just happened over the last few days. It is the distillation, crystallization of different points of view built over the last few years and put together in a very, very finely balanced package, which is why I believe that at this very final moment, any effort to put in additional elements has the risk of derailing the process that began many years ago, the process of building a smooth and seamless transition to a single-track future permanent mechanism. And I'm explaining the context so as to urge you to reflect on how far we have traversed as a group, as a community, and how far we have come in terms of building layers of understanding, building a degree of convergence on a set of issues that are reflected in the annual progress reports and potentially in this final progress report. And that is why any further amendments or requests is going to create the risk of not being able to cross the finish line. So I'd like each one of you to reflect The final thing I would say is that the CRP will open the door into the future for this process. I think we are on the threshold of crossing from one mechanism into the new one, but that step forward is not something that I can take that step forward, to cross the threshold from this mechanism to the next, is your decision to make. And as to whether there will be consensus on the CRP is also in your hands now. I've done my utmost as Chair of this process to listen to each one of you, to create a conducive environment where different viewpoints are expressed and also to be always transparent and to be faithful to the mandate of this process. But the ultimate decision as to whether there is consensus lies in your hands and I wanted you to be clearly aware of this. moment as we begin the discussions this morning. So, my friends, with these comments, I'd like to open the floor now to see if there are any views or whether any delegations wish to express their views on the conference room paper which contains the draft final Thank you very much. I have a few speakers who have asked for the floor, so we'll start with India, to be followed by Portugal.

Thank you, Chair. India wishes to place on record its deep appreciation for your exemplary leadership and the meticulous efforts of your team throughout the OEWG process. It is commendable that this long journey of more than 5 years of this OEWG and other previous mechanisms also, marked by consensus and cooperation, is now at the dawn of a new phase with the establishment of a permanent mechanism. The OEWG's work in discussing the many crucial elements of continuously evolving landscape of cyberspace stands as a testament to the value of multilateral dialogue and consensus. While noting that many additional elements could have been incorporated in the conference room paper, India recognizes that in the spirit of consensus, it is essential to agree on the common grounds at this stage. Further, the global mechanism will provide a permanent platform to deliberate on further elements as and when required. We underscore the importance of continuing the discussions on existing and potential threats, since several new and emerging threats like AI-powered tools will need closer coordination and discussions if we are to stay ahead of the malicious actors. In a similar vein, we recognize the merit in continuing discussions and facilitating common understandings on the application of international law in cyberspace. As well as in exploring the possibilities of requirement of additional norms should it be warranted in future. We are very pleased to note that capacity building has been accorded the prominence it deserves. The establishment of the Global ICT Security Cooperation and Capacity Building Portal is a milestone and a concrete outcome of this crucial OEWG process. It is an important step in bridging the digital divide and has been an important ask, particularly of the Global South countries. We reiterate that India stands ready to provide any support necessary to ensure its success. India aligns itself with the positive sentiments expressed by many delegations regarding dedication of a separate dedicated thematic group focused on ICT security capacity building. With these points in mind and in the interest of consensus, India has shown flexibility and is extending its support to the Conference Room Paper as we view it as a balanced and pragmatic document that advances international cooperation and strengthens trust among states. We emphasize that all decisions in the Future Permanent Mechanism should continue to be based on consensus as articulated in the 3rd Annual Progress Report. India remains committed to constructive engagement and international cooperation in the evolving landscape of ICT security. We look forward to a positive conclusion of this process and the swift realization of the Future Permanent Mechanism. Thank you, Chair.

Thank you very much, India, for your statement and for your support for the Conference Room Paper. I give the floor now to Vanuatu, to be followed by Tunisia.

Mr. Chair, good morning. On behalf of the Vanuatu delegation, I wish to extend to you, your team, and the Secretariat Our sincere thanks. Your respect for the views of small island developing states like Vanuatu has been evident to us throughout these almost five years. Chair, on the other hand, we were saddened to see some references to cross-regional papers that were supported, were supportive of taken that we were supportive of were taken out. In the latest draft. Those were important pieces of work where small island developing states were contributing to the development of the framework for responsible state behavior. On the other hand, we were pleased to see several of our comments on capacity building reflected in Rev. 2 and now in this CRP. And to us, This is the nature of diplomacy. None of us get everything we want.

Mr.

Chair, when you spoke about a fine balance, please rest assured that the Vanuatu delegation was listening. Mr. Chair, we are ready to adopt the CRP as presented. Thank you.

Thank you very much. Vanuatu, for your very important statement. It is indeed in the nature of diplomacy that each one of us need to show flexibility, to give and take, and to move forward. I appreciate your comments and your support for the CRP. Tunisia, you have the floor, please.

Mr.

Chair, Mr.

Burhan Ghaffour. The Republic of Tunisia is making this statement on behalf of the Arab Group to explain its position on this document within the OAWG under Resolution 75240. At the outset, we thank you for your outstanding leadership of our work over the past 5 years— 5 years of serious work. We pay tribute to Singapore, member of the Non-Aligned Group, which we are also members of, and we thank Singapore for its support within the OEWG in helping us arrive at the desired results. The Arab Group reiterates here its commitment to a transition toward a permanent mechanism, a comprehensive mechanism based on consensus within the UN. For us, this is a crucial goal that we are addressing in our meeting here. And it will lead us toward a global level of cybersecurity to tackle challenges, address risks, the risks that countries are increasingly facing in cyberspace, as well as in the use of ICTs. We commend these successes and your efforts, but would also like to make the following remarks. First of all, the fact that the section reserved for international law in cyberspace was removed exacerbates concerns by certain states regarding the use of ICTs at a time when a common understanding is still far from certain with regard to the application of international law and its principles in cyberspace. We're thinking about, in particular, international humanitarian law. We've seen clear violations of the IHL in the Middle East. With the use of ICTs. The Arab group believes that the first working group and its extremely broad mandate does not allow for an in-depth discussion of this very important issue. That is the first thematic group. With regard to paragraphs 9 and 10 of the Annex, we will present proposals for amendments, and we ask the Chair of the Mechanism to hold a conference on the application of international law. Secondly, the weakness of the section on capacity building. At a time when we are hoping that a thematic group dedicated to this issue, it was not possible to set up a voluntary fund or a fellowship program. We also note the lack of a mechanism that could support capacity building. That would be adequately funded and predictable. For this to be possible, or at least part of it to be possible, we ought to support developing states and help close the digital divide. But this remains only on paper. Thirdly, the Arab Group is concerned about the significant changes to the international law section, which concerns very important principles supported by the Arab Group, especially sovereign national sovereignty, as well as non-interference in domestic affairs of states, as well as non-use of force, respect for international humanitarian law. And the thematic group on international law has been removed, and this exacerbates our concerns when it comes to international law being upheld under the permanent mechanism. Fourthly, the Arab Group welcomes the fact that the intergovernmental nature of the mechanism has been maintained. This mechanism would be led by states. The participation of stakeholders is also guaranteed. That is, stakeholders that have consultative status with ECOSOC under the no objection procedure. In conclusion, the Arab Group. Remains committed to constructive discussions within this forum to protect ourselves from pressing threats and challenges. We join the consensus on the CRP paper that contains the draft report. But we do express certain reservations on the final form of the report as well as complementary measures of the global mechanism. And this might lead to the creation of a new process without taking into account the concerns that we have around strengthening peace and security. Thank you.

Thank you very much, Tunisia, speaking on behalf of the Arab Group, and your statement is well noted. And thank you very much also for indicating that your group is in a position to join consensus. Excellencies, dear friends, I'm very heartened by the fact that you I'm glad to have taken into heed my message on the need to maintain the careful balance in the CRP. I see no further requests for the floor and it's my intention now to proceed to the adoption of the report as contained in document CRP1. But I'd like to assure you that you will all have an opportunity to make your statements May I take it that it is the wish of the Working Group to adopt the draft final report of the Open-Ended Working Group as contained in document A/AC.292/2025/CRP1 and to include it in the report of the Working Group?

Yes.

I see no objection. It is so decided. Thank you.

Good.

You can have the afternoon off.

Thank you.

Thank you very much for the applause. I think it was an applause Of collective relief. Needless to say, of collective joy and satisfaction, I hope, that with this adoption, ladies and gentlemen, we have taken a step into the future. Congratulations to you. So we will continue Now, would any delegation wishing to make statements— and after we have heard those who wish to make statements, we will move to the consideration of the draft procedural report because, as you know, there is a procedural report that is contained in document L1, and then we'll close the meeting.

Thank you.

So I'd like to now open the floor for those delegations or groups of delegations wishing to make any statements. And once again, please be brief so that we can be efficient in the use of our time. And I also wanted to highlight at this point that— Yes, yeah, I also wish to highlight that you also have the option of sending in statements in explanation of position on the adoption of the final report, and these statements will be circulated in an information note by the Secretariat in the original language in which it has been submitted. And so you have the option of submitting any written statement, individually or as a group, 3 weeks after the meeting today, and the Secretariat will compile all statements and explications of position on the adoption of the final report. And that is another option too, but I will not stop delegations from taking the floor at this point. The floor is now open. Tonga, to be followed by Venezuela.

Thank you, Chair, and thank you for giving me the floor to speak first after this adoption. Which is indeed an honor. On behalf of the Pacific Island Forum member states with a presence in the United Nations, I wish to express our deepest appreciation to you, Ambassador Gaffour, and to your entire team for your tireless work, unwavering commitment to multilateralism, and genuine passion you have brought to this process. The framework of responsible state behavior in cyberspace has been— to this process. strengthened under your stewardship, and we thank you for guiding this group in such dedication, patience, and inclusivity. We also wish to acknowledge the tireless efforts of Matthew Wong in supporting your leadership. We also extend our sincere thanks to the Secretariat, and in particular to Ms. Catherine Priesman, whose steady support and wise advice and diligent work has been instrumental throughout these 4 years. We thank all our development partners who have made this participation possible. In particular, we highlight the Women in International Security and Cyber Fellowship, which has not only expanded SIDS and women's participation but also built a global community of cyber practitioners. That community— diverse, capable, and connected— is one of the enduring legacies of this group, and we look forward to seeing it continue to grow. The OEWG has not been just a venue for discussion; it has been a catalyst for action. In our region, this process has driven national and regional change in strengthening our cyber resilience. Together, we have articulated common regional positions on many core issues. The unity shaped through dialogue, grounded in shared values, will outlast this Working Group and guide us into the next phase. Thank you, Chair, and thank you All colleagues in this room, in the Pacific, we are voyaging peoples. We understand that to cross great oceans, we must travel together, each person with a role to play, each voice guiding the course. As we move forward, we hope the future mechanism will be built in the same spirit— steady, collective, inclusive, and with all states aboard. I thank you.

Thank you very much, Tonga, for your statement. Venezuela, to be followed by El Salvador.

Chair, the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela aligns itself with a statement that is to be delivered by the delegation of Nicaragua on on behalf of a group of like-minded countries. Chair, the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela wishes to take this opportunity to express our profound thanks for the work that without a doubt can be described as excellent and spectacular. Over the course of the last 5 years, the work of the chair of this OEWG has been exemplary. However, over the last 2 years you have shown how the curve of learning of the CHES team has been even more impressive. Mechanisms for decisions such as voting are easy to implement, but understanding and applying a genuine sense of consensus across more than 100 countries to produce a document that reflects some of the opinions of all of the participants who themselves have very diverging and sometimes even contradictory views is a truly impressive achievement. All delegations here have a great debt of gratitude to the efforts, patience, and the temperance of the chair of this group. Chair, you stand as an example of how the member states of this organization should truly promote multilateralism internationally. The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela naturally does not see that all of our considerations are included in the final report, but at the same time, Venezuela, together with the chair of this group, both of us I think understand the nature of consensus and that this is about multiple voices and ideas all with the same right to be expressed and to be a part of international affairs. And for this reason, the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela has joined the consensus in ratifying the latest resolution version of the draft final report of the OEWG. We take this opportunity once again to congratulate you, Ambassador Gaffur, on your excellent work. Thank you very much.

Thank you very much, Venezuela. El Salvador, please, to be followed by Islamic Republic of Iran. Gracias, Presidente.

Thank you, Chair. El Salvador wishes to express our sincere thanks to you for your tireless efforts, Ambassador Burhan Gafoor, and we thank you for the commitment of your team in this process. We extend special recognition to Madam Clarice Ling, Mr. Matthew Wong, and Ms. Jin Yang Goh, with whom we have worked very closely. We also extend our thanks Women in Cyber and the privately funded fund has allowed us to participate, and we are deeply grateful for these opportunities. El Salvador has firmly supported this process from its very beginning. We know that this is not a perfect document. We had aspired to a more progressive vision as to how to progress to implementation of the Framework on Responsible Behavior. Nevertheless, from the perspective of a small state, we have gained a great deal in an area that historically has been dominated by actors with greatest technological power and greater political influence. Small states such as El Salvador have actually been able to position critical priorities And we have done so by driving the strengthening of cybernetic capabilities and the development of national resilience, as well as raising awareness about emerging threats and highlighting the debate as to how international law can be applied to cyberspace. We consider that we have contributed to balancing these deliberations and to guaranteeing that the framework reflects a broader range of perspectives and development realities. El Salvador will continue promoting inclusive dialogue, greater trust, and digital solidarity. We do this because for us these are not mere abstract principles. These are concrete necessities in order to achieve effective governance for the protection of critical infrastructure and in order to ensure that technologies contribute to international peace and security. I thank you, Chair.

Thank you very much, Salvador. Islamic Republic of Iran, to be followed by Mauritius.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. My delegation would like to express its sincere appreciation to you, your team, and the Secretariat for your dedicated tireless and professional efforts throughout the OEWG process. Your commitment to fostering an inclusive, transparent, and constructive dialogue has been instrumental in guiding our collective work and advancing progress on this complex and vital agenda. We commend your leadership in building consensus among member states and in facilitating a smooth transition to the global mechanism. My delegation aligns itself with the, with the joint statement of the LMG Group, which will be delivered later today. Mr. Chair, while we welcome and appreciate the positive improvements introduced throughout the various parts of the final report and acknowledge the progress made, my delegation remains concerned that it does not fully reflect the breadth of the threats landscape. My delegation remains concerned that it does not fully reflect the entire range of the threat landscape, as it overlooks several threats identified by a number of States during the OEWG deliberations, particularly those related to the responsibilities of the private sector and platforms with extraterritorial impact. To address this significant gap and ensure a more balanced and comprehensive representation of the OEWG mandate, My delegation put forward a compromise proposal to compile a list of threats identified by states throughout the OEWG process to serve as a valuable reference for the work of the global mechanism. We continue to strongly believe that our proposal offers a constructive way to address this substantive shortcoming in the threats section. In line with the final sentence of paragraph 14 of the final report, which acknowledged the need to continue addressing the diverse landscape of ICT threats in a manner that reflects the realities of all countries and regions, my delegation will remain engaged in advancing the consideration of critical threats identified by a number of states, including my own, within the framework of global framework. Mechanism. Sorry, Mr. Chair. The consensus-based decision-making modality of the global mechanism is clearly articulated in Annex C of the 3rd APR, which states the future permanent mechanism would take all decisions based on the principle of consensus. This language leaves no ambiguity regarding the intended approach. Decision within the future mechanism are to be made by consensus. Any interpretation that diverges from this agreed and fundamental principle would compromise the very foundation of the global mechanism and is therefore not acceptable. I thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Iran, for your statement. Mauritius, to be followed by Israel.

Thank you, Chair. The Mauritian delegation wishes to express our strong support for the adoption of the CRP as presented. The text reflects a balanced and constructive outcome of our collective efforts, and we welcome— and we commend the Chair, his team, and the Secretariat for their inclusive approach and diligent facilitation throughout the process. The CRP captures the key priorities and perspectives shared by delegations over the course of our discussions and represents a meaningful step forward. Furthermore, the CRP reflects the needs of small island developing states like Mauritius, offering concrete avenues for inclusion and capacity building support. We believe its adoption will contribute significantly to advancing our common objectives and reinforcing international cooperation in this important area. Before ending, and on a personal note, allow me, Chair, to extend my heartfelt thanks to everyone who has been part of this journey— yourself, Ambassador Gaffour, Catherine, Virginia, Matthew, and everyone else. It has been a privilege to work alongside such dedicated and thoughtful colleagues right from the beginning. Your support, collaboration, and shared commitment over these past years have been deeply meaningful. Thank you for the trust, the conversations, and the many moments of shared purpose. I look forward to what we can continue to achieve together in the spirit of partnership and mutual respect. Thank you very much.

Thank you very much, Mauritius, for your statement and for your kind words. Israel, to be followed by Cuba.

Thank you, Chair, for giving us the floor. Dear Chair, Israel wishes to express its sincere and deep appreciation to you and your very, very able team for your dedicated leadership throughout this process, culminating today in the successful adoption of this consensus report. This achievement underscores the importance of the principle of consensus as a cornerstone of our work. It is this spirit of inclusivity and shared ownership that has enabled us to— enables all of us to advance a common understanding of responsible state behavior in cyberspace. Some of our reservations still remain unanswered, and unfortunately not all our concerns were fully addressed in the final version of the CRP. However, in the spirit of consensus, wishing to express positive will, and in the light of all the constructive cooperation presented through the last few days here in New York by so many delegations, we understand the need for a certain degree of flexibility. Israel joined all delegations and is pleased to support this CRP. We can assure you that the Israeli delegation remains committed to work with all other states and to continue to present a constructive approach to further advance the dialogue on cybersecurity in the UN framework. As the mandate of the Open-Ended Working Group ends today and we look ahead to the establishment of a global mechanism, Israel has constantly maintained that consensus must continue to guide us in all our decision-making, whether on procedural or substantive matters. Only by preserving this principle and decision-making modality can we assure that the interest and perspectives of all member states are duly respected, and that all— that our collective efforts remain credible, balanced, and effective. We are encouraged by the fact that our discussions have time and again proven that this notion is universally shared by member states, and we welcome the agreement on this matter as it clearly reflects in the 3rd APR and in the current final report as well.

We'll continue to work to build global cyber resilience and to promote the security and stability of cyberspace. I thank you.

Thank you very much, Israel, for your statement and also for your expressions of support. Cuba, to be followed by Republic of Korea, please.

Gracias, señor presidente. Thank you, Chair. We are grateful to you for your intense efforts in achieving the final report of the OEWG on security of and in the use of ICTs following 5 years of arduous work. We also appreciate the professionalism of your team and the support from the Secretariat. The agreement for the establishment of an intergovernmental mechanism that will be maintained through consensus and will allow regular institutional dialogue under the auspices of the United Nations is truly a meaningful achievement. The Cuban delegation has been working actively towards this end as part of our commitment to the OEWG, a forum created under the proposal of the Russian Federation together with the group of countries, and this is especially important for developing countries. We're also grateful to delegations for their cooperation that allowed this result despite such divergent positions and intense days of deliberations. With a view to discussions under the future mechanism, we wish to place on the record that there is not currently a common understanding on the supposed neutralities of technologies, a notion that is mentioned in paragraph 26 of the final report. At the same time, we should not force the notion of the applicability of IHL onto cyberspace in light of concerns because some countries are developing offensive capacities in relation to the use of ICTs. And so we think that rather than tacitly agreeing to the possibility of a scenario of armed conflict in cyberspace, rather we should be focused on the essential purpose which is preserving ICTs for exclusively peaceful purposes aimed at furthering development. We hope that this new chapter that is being opened now will make progress in legally binding obligations in the area of ICT security and their use. This would facilitate common understanding as to how international law applies to this area. It will address legal gaps and we hope establish clear obligations for all states. Cuba maintains its commitment to actively contribute to this end. I thank you.

Thank you very much, Cuba, for your statement and also for your expressions of support for the outcome document. Republic of Korea, to be followed by Egypt.

Thank you, Chair, you and your team's excellent leadership and dedication to this OEWG process and multilateralism. As you rightly pointed out, it is a rare thing to enjoy 100% satisfaction about the outcome of multilateral negotiation. Nevertheless, we're hopeful because you said that this outcome of our work is not final. This is only part of a long journey where we can achieve more in the end. So I believe we have still a long way to go, but under your leadership, I think we can continue to constructively engage with other distinguished colleagues here and achieve meaningful outcome in the end.

I thank you.

Thank you very much, Republic of Korea, for your statement and also for your support and kind statement. But just a slight clarification to your statement: it will no longer be me— under my leadership. You are right that we have a long journey ahead. I am confident that all of you, with the spirit of goodwill that you have built over the years, will be able to make that long journey, but it will not be under my leadership. Thank you very much for that. Egypt, to be followed by China.

Thank you, Chair, and the first thing that we say is that we invite you to reconsider. Chairperson, we align with the statement delivered earlier by Tunisia on behalf of the Arab Group, as well as the statement delivered yesterday by Nigeria on behalf of the African Group. In the first intervention by the Egyptian delegation during this 11th meeting, we underscored that our main and key priority would be to ensure a seamless transition to a future permanent mechanism that can enable the continuation of a single-track, action-oriented, and consensus-based UN-led process on security off and in the use of ICT, and not to open the space for a vacuum or competitive initiatives. From this prism, Egypt joins consensus today around the draft report. We based our decision on a number of considerations, including the fact that this report complements the 3 annual progress reports previously adopted by consensus, and that the normative framework of responsible state behavior continues to be cumulative and evolving. We welcome also the steps taken at this report to reflect a more diverse and representative landscape of threats that captures the reality in different regions. Nevertheless, and as explained on previous occasions, we continue to be deeply disappointed with some crucial points with this report and its annex. The omission of a dedicated DTG on the application of international law in the context of cyberspace is very alarming, and along with the significant reduction in the content of Section D on international law, Egypt, like many others, is concerned with how the application of and compliance with respective international law obligations, including international humanitarian law, will be approached under the new global mechanism. It is important to indicate once again that our interest and commitment to discussions supporting respect to international law and the UN Charter does not in any meaner way indicate conclusive preference or preempting a discussion on a legally binding instrument as an indispensable pathway. As mentioned by the Arab Group, we continue to advance this avenue at the upcoming review meeting and request the chairperson of the Global Mechanism to convene a focused roundtable on application of international law. In addition, we maintain our view that the content and recommendations in relation to capacity building is significantly lower than our expectations. Without concrete and meaningful steps to establish a UN-led capacity-building vehicle, including through the Voluntary Fund and Sponsorship Programme, and availing adequate, sufficient, and predictable resources for this purpose, the discussion at DTG II will not realize its desired potential. Making meaningful and prompt progress on this front will be crucial for the level of confidence and the credibility of the newly born mechanism. Mr. Chairperson, having said that, we won't miss on paying tribute to your exemplary leadership. Chairperson, we have mentioned before and we are saying it once again, you were consistently the most serious and diligent participant in this process from its inception till its conclusion. Without your strong and impactful leadership, this process would have been in a very different place, which is way less effective and ambitious. I want also to extend our gratitude to my dear— to my 2 dear colleagues and friends from your team, Matthew Wong and Clarice Lim, and the very dedicated team at the Secretariat, Ms. Preissman and Ms. Browning. Chairperson, thank you for taking us forward at a time when consensus around progress at the UN is becoming the exception rather than the norm.

Thank you very much, Egypt, for your statement and for your very kind words addressed to me and members of my team. China, to be followed by Argentina.

Thank you, Chair. This morning's meeting obviously which leaves me with the most impression Yes, the round of very loud applause. I believe that everybody has different interpretation of that round of applause, but in the past week, the delegates who had the least sleep would have the most feelings about that round of applause. What I mean is, Most of the people that I was talking about are on the podium right now, and that is why I would like to take this opportunity to thank you, the Chair. Thank you, you and your able team, as well as colleagues from the Secretariat. I would like to thank you for your hard work. Obviously, undoubtedly, today is a very special successful day with far-reaching consequences. I would like to make the first point, that is, the outcome of today's meeting shows that our mechanism has passed a very important stress test given the current geopolitical landscape which is filled with challenges. Hotspot conflicts in regions are ongoing and in countries— we see that some countries are not so keen on the concept of multilateralism. Given this context and background, the success of our meeting is of a special great significance. As the multilateral system is faced with such difficulties, today's meeting and success increases our confidence in multilateralism. The second point I would like to make is In terms of multilateral process on ICT security, we are seeing a new milestone today. The topic became a topic under the consideration of the UN as early as 1998, and in the past 27 years, If we look back, we have achieved 2 most important milestones, the first one being framework of responsible state behavior in cyberspace, the other being the draft report on the creation of a future permanent mechanism. As technology evolves, there are new emerging topics and subject matters, and cyberspace, in fact, is one of the more mature topics. In the past 27 years, The success we have achieved would be a very good example that we could learn when we deal with other governance issues in emerging areas. And when we look at new emerging topics and if we look forward for another 27 years, They may not see as good an outcome as what we have today. I may be the delegate with the longest working history in the area of cyberspace, and I would like to say that I am proud of that experience. The third point I'd like to make is that China has always been an advocate for multilateralism as well as a strong supporter of the United Nations, international rules, among others. And we know that the current multilateral system is far from being perfect. The rules are far from being complete. The current reality of abiding by these rules are not satisfactory either. But China believes that through multilateral efforts, we need to improve and strengthen current mechanisms instead of just walking away or abandoning them because we believe that without a multilateral mechanism, the international community will turn into a place where it is more— it more resembles a jungle world where everybody speaks from strength. I would like to say that only a very small number of countries will be able to sit by the table of the international community while the majority of the countries will become what's put on the table. Put on the menu.

Put on the menu.

That is why multilateralism or the multilateral system for all member states, in particular for small and medium countries, has special and significant importance. The third point I would like to make is that the achievement we have seen today is the result of the collective efforts of all member states, but I would like to be very objective in saying that our success is because we have an exceptional chair. Thanks to your abundant diplomatic experience and excellent diplomatic skills, as well as your deep understanding of different positions of all countries, as well as the cyberspace itself in the past 5 years, given such a context that is filled with challenges, Thanks to your leadership, our sessions have reached today's outcome, which is really hard-won. Compared with other excellent diplomats, you, the chair, has a unique strong suit. At the critical moment of a negotiation, Through changing the color of your outfit, you would send sensitive but important messages to all delegates. From yesterday, I actually was looking forward to enjoying today's success. In closing, I would like to say, I would like to say that this document or this new milestone is a success of multilateralism. It is also a success of all delegations. This is also the success of all the diplomats sitting here in this conference room working in the area of cyberspace. Thank you, Chair.

Thank you very much, China, for your very, very kind remarks addressed to me and my team and also for your support for the outcome document and for this process. And as you said, as one of the longest-serving representatives in the room at this point now who has been involved in this process, for such a long period. I think your role has been very helpful. And I would also say, for those who have not served as long, or even if this is your very first meeting, I think each one of you who has contributed to the outcome of this process and the outcome of this meeting today, you have the responsibility to play that role of being a catalyst for consensus, as a facilitator for convergence, as a trust builder and a bridge builder, because multilateralism is not just a process that is mechanical. It is a process where people have views, people have agency, people can make a difference and people need to build trust. And so, while quite a number of you have said very kind words about me and my team, I think ultimately this is your success. I wasn't going to respond to all these comments. I was going to make some closing remarks, which I'd like to do, but we do have a long list of speakers. I'd like to hear as many of you as possible. But keep in mind that ultimately this is your success, it is your process, it is your outcome, and it is you who will have to take this and continue this journey of 1,000 miles. So thank you very much. But it is correct that I have a colorful handkerchief today, and I thought I should cheer myself up because it's Friday, but ultimately it's All of you who have cheered me up, so I thank you very much for all your friendship. Long list of speakers, but let me add at this point that it's my intention to conclude our meeting at 1 PM so that you can have the afternoon free to do what you need to do. So I'd like to hear as many of you as possible, then we have to adopt the procedure report and then I'll make some concluding comments in terms of what we need to do moving forward, including the First Committee resolution that needs to be adopted as well to complete the passage of this report. But we'll continue with the speakers list. Argentina, to be followed by the European Union.

Thank you, Chair. I'm taking the floor to express an explanation of position in relation to the final report of the OEWG on the security of and in the use of ICTs. We welcome the report and we thank everyone for its adoption. On the word gender, Argentina understands in the framework of international law which refers to 2 sexes, male and female, in accordance with the Rome Statute 7.3. The commitment of Argentina to women's rights has been sustained over time and is reflected in international practices that actually goes beyond international standards. As regards Agenda 2030, Argentina recalls that it is not legally binding, that each state in exercise of their sovereignty has the right to interpret and pursue Chair, we wish to express our gratitude to you for the effective, transparent, and inclusive manner in which you have led the work of this group over the past 5 years of its mandate. We especially value the momentum from all delegations as well as the professionalism of the Secretariat of the ODA and also the work of the interpreters whose technical support has been essential throughout this process. We highlight that the contributions made by states are reflected in a balanced way in the final document as the exercise of a genuine negotiation process. This confirms the collective commitment to maintaining an open, interoperable, stable, secure, and peaceful cyberspace. We are especially gratified to see the incorporation of a thematic group dedicated to capacity building, A proposal that had firm support from my delegation and many other countries in our region throughout the process. We consider that the final report represents a meaningful contribution to strengthening the multilateral framework in the area of cybersecurity and cyber resilience, and builds on more than two decades of multilateral. Work made up of principles, capacity building measures, and understandings that will continue to guide progress in an international framework on security and the use of ICTs. Chair, the mechanism that today is established as a result of this sustained work— you, this team, your team, and the Secretariat— will build on achievements to date, preserving the spirit of consensus transparency and representativeness that has characterized this process. The present explanation of position has been submitted to the Secretariat for publication. I thank you.

Thank you very much, Argentina, for your statement. European Union, to be followed by Mozambique.

Thank you, Chair. I know that all of EU member states would want to take the floor to thank you, and some will certainly do that. But at the same time, saying for the last time this week that I have the honour to speak on behalf of the Union's member states, I also note that we likely run the risk to go into the afternoon with all our thank-yous. So therefore, please note indeed I speak on behalf of all of the EU member states. If you don't hear them all, this is certainly from them all. Not only this week but over the past years, we've shown commitment, we've shown flexibility, and dedication with the aim to advance responsible state behavior in cyberspace and conclude this process with a smooth and seamless transition to a single-track future permanent mechanism. Our ambitions in the report might have been different, as our intervention over the past days has shown. This week and this morning has also proven that the ambition to establish a permanent mechanism has been at the core of what unites us all. While we all have our additional wish list for the report, all well known, we applaud our collective achievement to agree on a global mechanism that will allow us to walk the talk, to take real action using the tools that the UN framework and all its pillars offer us against the real challenges that we are all facing in cyberspace. Challenges that affect our security, our economy, and our democracies. And we look forward to take this next step together, working together to advance responsible state behavior in cyberspace, building upon our collective achievements since the first UN Group of Governmental Experts, and including this final Open-Ended Working Group report. The EU and its member states want to wholeheartedly thank you, you and your team, for your efforts and the good cooperation. Matthew, Clarisse, Gillian, as well as the UNODA, Catherine and Virginia, as well as UN Secretary-General Nakamitsu. It has been a real pleasure to work with you all. Chair, your wise leadership has allowed us to make history. It has collectively moved us forward to advance responsible state behavior in cyberspace, and it will serve to demonstrate the value of multilateralism.

Thank you. Thank you very much, European Union, for your kind statement. Mozambique, to be followed by Brazil.

Thank you, Mr. Chair, for giving us the floor. My delegation commends you and your team for your hard work. We especially congratulate you on your outstanding leadership and the successful conclusion of the Open-Ended Working Group mandates. The adoption of the final report is a major milestone in international cyber diplomacy. And a testament to your commitment to transparency, inclusivity, and consensus. We also wish to acknowledge the Women in International Security and Cyberspace Fellowship, which has significantly empowered women delegates, including Mozambicans, in a meaningful way. It stands as a model for inclusive and impactful capacity building. As we close this chapter, Mozambique looks ahead with optimism to the operationalization of the future global mechanism. We remain committed to working constructively with all member states and stakeholders to ensure it becomes an effective and action-oriented platform that reflects the priorities of all states, especially developing countries. Technology will continue to evolve just as threats will. Undoubtedly, we will face new challenges, but today we leave behind a meaningful legacy. This is not the end but a beginning. And we will surely have further opportunity to come together united to shape our common future in digital world. Parabéns, congratulations, and I will say it in my mother tongue language, makorokot, Mr. Chair, and all of us. I thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you very much, Mozambique, for your support and very kind statements. Brazil, to be followed by the UK.

Mr. Chair, I would like to express my delegation's deepest appreciation to you and your team for the outstanding work throughout the past 5 years, which culminated in the adoption of our final report this morning. One of multilateralism's greatest clichés is that a fair and balanced document is one that no delegation finds perfect, but with which everyone is equally unhappy. It is true that we would have liked a higher level of ambition in some sections, particularly international law. Nevertheless, we still have a fair and balanced document, which is a meaningful addition to our acquis and an important contribution to the promotion of an open, safe, secure, stable, accessible, peaceful, and interoperable ICT environment, and which lays the groundwork for a seamless transition to a single-track permanent mechanism to address ICT security. Achieving this by consensus in such challenging geopolitical circumstances is a testament to the crucial importance and effectiveness of multilateralism. Brazil has been an active participant throughout this process, and you can count on us to continue our constructive engagement in the future mechanism. On a final note, Brazil joins other delegations in thanking you for your extremely able leadership and unwavering commitment to a fair and balanced— to fair and balanced since the beginning of this process. We must also acknowledge Clarice Lim, Matthew Wong, and Gillian Goh from your team, and Catherine Preissmann and Virginia Browning from the Secretariat for their exceptional work throughout this process. I thank you.

Thank you very much, Brazil, for your support and kind words. UK, to be followed by Portugal.

Thank you, Chair. We would like to offer our sincere and heartfelt congratulations to you, to your team, and to the Secretariat. I won't repeat their names again, but they know who they are— for delivering this critically important outcome on behalf of UN member states today. The UK welcomes the adoption of the CRP by consensus, which marks a meaningful and important step towards advancing a free, open, peaceful, secure international order in cyberspace. The UK has contributed to international cybersecurity discussions at the UN for over 25 years. We remain as committed as always to these consensus discussions at the UN and the importance of the UN Framework on Responsible State Behavior in Cyberspace and its role in strengthening and safeguarding stability in cyberspace. We look forward to the global mechanism building on and deepening the many successes of this OEWG in March 2026. Thank you, Chair.

Thank you very much, UK. Portugal, to be followed by the Russian Federation.

Mr. Chairman, Portugal aligns with your statement but would like to add some comments on the meaning of the adoption of the final report of this open-ended working group, including the mandate for the next and permanent mechanism for institutional dialogue on responsible state behaviour in cyberspace, eventually agreed by consensus— to a great extent thanks to your superior diplomatic talents and engagement. As we all required, the mandate provides for regular institutional dialogue focused on the implementation of the consensually agreed normative framework of responsible state behaviour in cyberspace, repeatedly endorsed by the UN General Assembly since 2015. The future dialogue, focused on implementation of the normative framework, is meant to contribute decisively to upgrade national cyber capabilities across divides and to enable us to move on to a formal system of mutual accountability that levels up all Member States' contributions to peace and security in the digital space, so that all of them can peacefully and securely benefit from the digital transition. The Future Cross-Cutting Working Group designed to address specific security challenges to an open, stable, accessible, peaceful and interoperable cyberspace, and the Cross-Cutting Working Group designed to accelerate cybersecurity capacity building, in tandem with the Global Roundtable, have the potential to lead us towards action-oriented results and towards further layers of understanding of the applicability in cyberspace of existing international law, including the UN Charter, human rights law, and international humanitarian law. It goes without saying that the Member States should have been able to agree on more equitable and transparent future modalities for the selection of non-governmental interested parties, especially from the industry, given the private nature of the gatekeeping tech companies and of the vast majority of the critical infrastructures of our countries. But as you, Mr. Chairman, very well reminded us yesterday, there are no perfect UN documents. After all, at the review conferences of the next mechanism, Member States will of course remain free to, according to their evaluation of the results achieved, not only revisit the initial cross-cutting Working Group structure, but also improve the modalities of stakeholder participation. What we have achieved in 3.5 years will be crucial to the contribution of the next mechanism of institutional dialogue to what I see as a desirable long-term voluntary universal system of periodic compliance reporting, which would involve all of us in monitoring and assisting one another to achieve a higher degree of accountability in ensuring peace and security all along the digital development of our nations. Therefore, I would like on behalf of my government to once again thank you, Mr. Chairman, for your outstanding dedication and wish you all the best going forward in your career. Thank you.

Thank you very much, Portugal, for your very kind words. Russian Federation, to be followed by the United States.

Mr. Chair, distinguished colleagues, The Russian delegation thanks you, Mr. Chair, and your team for all the work you've done over the past 5 years, very difficult work as the chair of this working group. Under your wise leadership, the group became a truly effective mechanism and reaffirmed its status as the central UN platform for issues relating to security in the use of ICTs. Over the past 5 years, besides adopting 4 consensus reports, the group was also able to achieve concrete and practical results, including first and foremost, the Global Intergovernmental Directory of Points of Contact, which was launched on Russia's initiative in May 2024 and became the first universal confidence-building measure. And this all is to your credit. Thank you, Mr. President. Mr. Chair, Russia welcomes the consensus-based agreement to establish a single permanent mechanism on security in the use of ICTs. This mechanism further augments the role of the UN in overseeing this important topic and gives the successor body to the OEWG a central universal format to discuss issues of security in the use of ICTs. Mr. Chair, Russia joined the consensus on the final report of the OEWG. In the report, what was important for us in many states was reflected. However, to our deep disappointment, a number of our ideas, initiatives, and proposals that had been supported by other delegations over the past 5 years the OWG's work and which are objective reflections of our discussions were not taken into account. And so there was a balance on a number of important topics was not adhered to. We tried to reflect fairly the views of many states within the future mechanism and other relevant UN platforms in accordance with the principle of sovereign equality of It's unacceptable for a group of states to impede the expression of views of other states, placing their interests over those of others. That runs counter to the fundamental principles of the UN Charter. Mr. Chair, I'd like to make the following clarifying statement. Russia holds, as agreed by the OWG, its reports and relevant GA resolutions, that this mechanism is useful and ought to develop new norms of international law for digital security. And we support the continuation of relevant discussions in the future mechanism. Mr. Chair, an automatic and unconditional application of international law to the digital sphere is unacceptable. Reference to alleged sufficiency of certain norms of international law do not hold water. And this is against the discussions of the OAWG and its work on the first universal agreement on information security, the UN Convention Against Cybercrime. We call on all states to join this convention and to allow for it to enter into effect as soon as possible. The future global mechanism ought to work on issues of security in the use of ICTs as well as ICTs themselves. The mechanism ought to work to strengthen confidence between states, to prevent conflict between states, and will facilitate decisions by consensus in the information sphere. The basis for this is the unanimous adoption of the Russian initiative to create this intergovernmental global directory of points of contact. The participation of non-state actors in the activities of the OEWG were of limited utility when it comes to conflict settlement and building up technical capacity. In addition, certain NGOs and private ICT actors abused their status, undermining diplomatic efforts by leveling baseless accusations against states. We believe it's unacceptable to undermine the intergovernmental nature of discussions on security and the use of ICTs within the future mechanism, and we welcome the maintenance of the sovereign right of states to remove themselves from the work of the— that is, to remove from the work of the future mechanism NGOs that display inappropriate behavior. We see continued attempts to focus attention on certain topics— for example, AI, quantum computing, Internet of Things. Ransomware and underwater cameras and other such issues. We believe that these actions are not constructive and do not facilitate— and they increase the digital inequality between states. We welcome the consensus decision of the OEWG to create a thematic group on capacity building under the global mechanism is an important step toward overcoming the digital divide between countries. We hope for participation of all member states of the UN in implementing these tenets. We support capacity building in developing countries in the field of information security, including by signing legally binding agreements with these countries to strengthen their digital sovereignty. We support the development of a universal convention on international information security, the concept of which was presented by Russia together with like-minded states at the UN in April 2023. Mr. Chair, I ask you to include this statement in the compendium of national statements. which is an integral part of the final report of the OBWG. In closing, I'd like to thank the Secretariat and the interpreters for their immense contributions to the success of this event.

Round of applause.

Thank you very much, Russian Federation, for your statement and also for your very kind words. One day I'll sit back and reflect on what these applauses actually mean, because obviously there could be varying interpretations of the applauses and also possibly statements in explanation of applauses. But thank you very much, Russian Federation. Before I give the floor to the next speaker, it's 12 o'clock. I would really like to conclude our meeting at 1 PM so that all of us can take the afternoon off to do the many things we need to do. Secondly, I kindly ask you to be as succinct in your comments as possible, knowing that You have the possibility of submitting your statements over the next few weeks, all of which will be compiled in a compendium of statements and explanations of position on the adoption of the final report of the OEWG, which in turn will be circulated as an information note by the UN Secretariat. Thirdly, at 1:00 PM sharp, I've arranged for the UN photographer to So those of you who wish to be associated with this photo, you're welcome to be present here at 1 PM, and we will all be seated or gather around in this room to take one picture that we can hopefully keep for ourselves. So that is the family photo at 1 PM.

Thank you.

before we close and adjourn. So we'll go through the list of speakers and then we'll go through the other remaining issues on the agenda. United States, to be followed by Switzerland.

Thank you, Mr.

Chair. I would like to start by recognizing the work that you, your team, and the Secretariat have undertaken this week to get to the final report today. We appreciate your efforts to produce a document that is a better reflection of the work this OEWG has undertaken over the course of its mandate. In particular, the report sets the stage for a smooth transition to a single-track global mechanism that will continue important discussions on cyber stability and responsible state behavior while making meaningful progress on implementation of the framework through its dedicated thematic groups. We recognize the significance of capacity building to states' ability to implement the framework, and we are pleased to have found a path to retaining the capacity-building thematic group. We also appreciate that the report more accurately conveys the progress made in discussions on the application of existing international law to cyberspace, in particular by referencing discussion on international humanitarian law. Mr. Chair, the United States would like to express its disassociation with paragraphs 9, 12, 28, and 53A of the report. The United States remains deeply disappointed that the report retains references to gender and the Sustainable Development Goals. The United States strongly supports protecting women and girls, defending their rights, and promoting women's empowerment, and promotes the ability of women and girls to engage in all aspects of social, civic, political, and economic life. However, the United States does not support references in the final report to gender. Additionally, the Sustainable Development Goals advance a program of soft global governance that is inconsistent with U.S. sovereignty and adverse to the rights and interests of Americans, and the United States does not support references in the final report to SDGs. Thank you, Mr.

Chair.

Thank you.

Thank you very much, United States, for your statement. Your statement is well noted. I thank the United States for joining consensus on the document, and your statements with regard to dissociating your delegation from certain paragraphs is also noted. Switzerland, to be followed by Canada.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. As you said, The final report is a very balanced overall package. It's not a perfect document. We would have liked to see a much more ambitious report, particularly regarding international law, with a focus also on international humanitarian law. While the open-ended working group hasn't achieved breakthrough results on the most contentious issues, it has succeeded in maintaining multilateral dialogue, building capacity, contributing to confidence and creating practical results. You must measure its success against the complex nature of cybersecurity and the political divisions that exist among states on these issues. The broad participation by all member states and stakeholders ensured that a wide range of perspectives and concerns were considered, making the discussions more comprehensive and representative of divergent interests. This open-ended working group and the final report are very important but incremental steps in our common ambition to building an open, safe, secure, stable, accessible, peaceful, and interoperable ICT environment. To achieve this, our work will continue in and outside the Global Mechanism. Mr. Chair, this morning I asked an AI model whether the Chair of the Open-Ended Working Group has done a good job. The answer was, and I quote, the chair of the Open-Ended Working Group, Ambassador Burhan Ghafur of Singapore, has widely been regarded as having done a commendable and effective job, especially given the highly polarized and sensitive nature of the subject. We know that AI models sometimes hallucinate. But, but in this case, it was right. Under your leadership, we have adopted the final report that crowns a 5-year process. You and your team have done a great job. We would like to thank you, Mr. Chair, as well as Catherine, Virginia, Clarice, Matthew, and of course, Gillian. She is the one with the historical memory of the GGE 2021, the first first Open-Ended Working Group and this Open-Ended Working Group. Finally, I would like to thank all delegations for their flexibility and the stakeholders for their participation and valuable contributions. I thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you very much, Switzerland, for your statement and for your very kind remarks. I will not ask you to put on record which particular AI program was making those comments, but your comments are very much appreciated. Thank you. I'll give the floor now to Canada, to be followed by Nicaragua.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I debated taking the floor, but I am told this process cannot end without one more reference to our shared birch bark canoe. You and your team have showed exemplary dedication in consulting all states and also towards giving stakeholders informal opportunities to be heard over the last years. We commend your effort, and we thank you sincerely for your defense of multilateralism as a pillar of peace and security. You have guided our canoe over the rapids, moved us forward without tipping over and without too much going in circles, and we have landed safely at a harbor where we are ready for our next journey. You will not be surprised that Canada has some final comments on international law. We are glad to see the report reflects to a considerable extent the significant progress and achievements made by our OEWG. We have fostered common understandings and converging views, built capacities, strengthened cross-regional dialogue, and concluded with solid action-oriented recommendations. That said, we profoundly regret that the final report fails to capture the substantive convergence on international law that has become clear in the room. We regret the report leaves an incomplete record of the— of our years of work on international law. But this does not alter the reality that real progress and momentum was achieved under your guidance during this OEWG. My delegation is committed to pursuing these fruitful discussions on how international law applies in the global mechanism. The future mechanism represents a solid stepping stone to elevate the practical nature of our discussions. As we move forward, we call on all states to offer ultimate flexibility in allowing stakeholders to engage in our global mechanism. I wish to take this opportunity not only to thank you, your team, and the Secretariat for their dedicated work, but also thank our stakeholders. Their input, side events, and dedicated engagement has also helped us get this far. Many thanks again, Mr. Chair. It has been a journey. The next one awaits us, and Canada is enthusiastic to work with all member states as we work further to further responsible state behavior in cyberspace, while also working to come up with a new but still Canadian metaphor for a future process. Perhaps something about snowshoes and avoiding polar bears.

Thank you very much, Canada, for your statement and for your expressions of support. Nicaragua, to be followed by Malaysia.

Muchas gracias, señor presidente.

Thank you, Chair.

I speak on behalf of a group of like-minded states: the Republic of Belarus, the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, the People's Republic of China, the Republic of Cuba, the State of Eritrea, the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Republic of Niger, the Russian Federation, the Republic of Sudan, the Republic of Zimbabwe, and my own country, the Republic of Nicaragua. We appreciate the efforts made by you and your team in preparing the final report of the OEWG and joint consensus over this document. Due to your longstanding commitment to the OEWG process, the decision to establish a single-track, state-led, consensus-based global mechanism on developments on the field of ICTs in the context of international security and advancing responsible state behavior in the use of ICTs to deal comprehensively with a wide range of issues related to security of and in the use of ICTs has become possible. We admit that a number of improvements has been made in the final report with the proposals of the LMG Group taken into account. At the same time, we are disappointed with an overall misbalance between the implementation of the existing voluntary non-binding rules of state behavior and the development of new norms, including the elaboration of legally binding obligations in the use of ICTs. As for the modalities for For NGOs' participation, we welcome that accredited stakeholders will participate on a non-objection basis and obtain a solely consultative status, as the future permanent mechanism is strictly an intergovernmental process. It is of utmost importance to ensure that all 5 pillars of the mandate of the mechanism would be treated equally during the discussions with respect to the status State sovereignty and decision-making by consensus, which may not be challenged or conditioned according to modalities adopted by consensus. UNGA Resolution 79/237. Our group remains committed to working constructively within the mechanism to contribute to enhancing security of and in the use of ICTs. Señor Presidente.

Chair, in our national capacity, please allow us to make a few brief additional remarks. We wish to express our heartfelt appreciation for how you have conducted the process of the OEWG on security of and in the use of ICTs. We value the open and inclusive approach that allowed for the full participation of all member states on an equal footing regardless of their size, their level of development, or technological capacity, reflecting the true spirit of multilateralism and democracy that should guide our deliberations on an issue that is so critical to the peace and security of all nations. We extend our gratitude to you, Chair, and to your team for your dedication, impartiality, and tireless efforts to guide our complex deliberations towards a consensus document. We're also grateful for the critical technical and substantive support provided by the Secretariat, the interpreters, and the support staff whose work has been indispensable to the effective functioning of this process. The utmost priority of this session was to achieve a smooth transition from the OEWG to the future mechanism under the auspices of the United Nations, to be guided by the same spirit and consensus decision-making. In this regard, we wish to highlight that in our forthcoming discussions, special attention should be paid to implementation of mechanisms that effectively promote international cooperation with the aim of ensuring that developing countries can participate in future meetings of the mechanisms on an equal footing and strengthen the capacities of developing countries. We reiterate our position on the peaceful use of ICTs, on the prevention of an arms race in cyberspace, and our condemnation of the use of these technologies for hostile or aggressive purposes. We therefore reject any attempt to forcibly impose the applicability of international humanitarian law to cyberspace. The international community should focus its efforts on promoting the use of ICTs for the development of our peoples and in preventing conflicts created by cyberattacks. We hope that discussions for a legally binding instrument in the field of ICT security and their use will continue in the future mechanism. Such an instrument will allow us to address legal gaps in cybersecurity and establish obligations for all states. Chair Nicaragua reaffirms its commitment to this multilateral process. We will continue to participate actively and constructively in the future stages of the mechanism, as always advocating for a cyberspace that is a space of peace, cooperation, development, and respect for the sovereign rights of all nations. It's essential for the outcomes of this group to find expression in concrete actions that benefit all of humanity and prevent the use of ICTs as instruments of war or domination. I thank you.

Thank you very much, Nicaragua, for your statement. Australia— sorry, Malaysia. To be followed by Australia, please.

Mr.

Chair, allow me to speak on behalf of ASEAN. ASEAN would like to express its high appreciation for your efficient leadership and the dedicated efforts of your team throughout this OEWG. ASEAN is also proud that an esteemed ASEAN member state has been chairing this process. We are pleased to see the successful adoption of the Final Report under your capable guidance, which marks an important step towards ensuring a smooth transition to the Global Mechanism on ICT Security in the context of international security. ASEAN has remained steadfast in its commitment to this process and has consistently sought to contribute to our shared efforts to uphold peace and security and stability, while fostering an open, secure, stable, accessible, peaceful, and interoperable ICT environment.

We also recognize the importance of continuing discussion and reaffirm our intention to actively engage

Thank you very much, Malaysia, for your very kind statement on behalf of ASEAN, and thank you very much for ASEAN's support for this process. Now, before I go to Australia, friends, the list is growing and it seems that you are reluctant to let go of this process. I think you need to be ready to release yourself from this process, and I'm very keen to release you from this process, but the list of speakers is long, so can I please suggest that you try and make your statements in about 2 minutes so that we give everyone a chance? We have some procedural reports to adopt, and I think it's important that we do that, and I want to close with some comments as well about next steps. So Australia, over to you to start with 2 minutes.

Thank you, Chair. Australia aligns with the Pacific Islands Forum statement and wishes to make the following remarks in our national capacity. Australia wishes to express its sincere appreciation to you and your dedicated team for your leadership throughout this process. The adoption of the final report and the establishment of the new permanent mechanism by consensus represents a significant milestone in our collective efforts to uphold the rules-based international order and the framework for responsible state behavior in cyberspace. The outcome underscores the enduring value of multilateralism and reaffirms the central role of the United Nations in facilitating dialogue, fostering understanding, and enabling member states to navigate new and complex challenges together. It reflects the determination of our chair, the importance that all governments place on this issue, and the collective commitment demonstrated by every delegation throughout these negotiations. While certain elements of the final report do not fully align with Australia's national positions, we acknowledge the finely balanced package to achieve consensus. In the spirit of cooperation and flexibility, we accept the outcome that has been reached. Australia believes the final report provides a strong foundation for our work ahead. It consolidates decades of work since the first GGE and sets a clear direction for the new permanent mechanism to advance the framework for responsible state behavior. As we take stock of our progress, Australia notes 2 major disappointments on the final report. Firstly, on international law, Australia is disappointed that the chapter does not capture all the progress made and the emerging convergence has reached over almost 5 years. We would have liked references to the application of international human rights law, the law of state responsibility, and international humanitarian law as reflected in the cross-regional paper on international law. We're also disappointed that references to the ICT resolution of the 34th Conference of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent, an important consensus document, was deleted, as were the 2 OEWG cross-regional working papers, which remain important pieces of work. On stakeholders, we regret that we were not able to make more progress on improving inclusiveness and transparency. However, Australia welcomes the final report's recognition of the high level of participation participation by women delegates and the integration of gender perspectives in our discussions. We would particularly like to acknowledge the valuable contributions of the Women in International Security and Cyberspace Fellows, which has enriched our deliberations and strengthened the collective outcome. Australia encourages all member states to support and increase the meaningful participation of women, both within the new permanent mechanism and across the landscape of cybersecurity and international security. In closing, Australia extends its sincere appreciation to all delegations, to our chair, and to his exceptional team for their tireless efforts in achieving a consensus outcome. We look forward to continuing our work under the new permanent mechanism and advancing our shared goal to protect and promote a peaceful, stable, and interoperable cyberspace for all. Thank you.

Thank you very much, Australia. Malawi, to Malawi will be followed by Ghana.

Chair, the Republic of Malawi takes the floor not only to express its final views but to extend our sincere appreciation and gratitude. We came to this process not just to share our national concerns and views but also to thank you for your tireless leadership throughout this complex but rewarding Chair, you have demonstrated patience, balance, and unwavering commitment to inclusivity. You gave every delegation, regardless of size or resources, an equal platform to be heard. For countries like Malawi, this has meant the world. My delegation is further grateful for the WIG Fellowship and all sponsoring countries for allowing the wonderful ladies from across the world to participate in these discussions. We are particularly encouraged that consensus has been reached. This outcome is not just a document; it is a testament to what is possible when the international community engages in good faith, listens to one another, and works toward shared goals. The concerns and priorities of developing countries, including capacity building, protection of critical infrastructure, and the applicability of international law, have found meaningful expression. Expression in the final report. As we transition into the global mechanism, we carry forward a spirit of unity, responsibility, and cooperation. The Republic of Malawi stands ready to continue contributing constructively, ensuring that the framework we've built here endures and grows stronger. Once again, congratulations on bringing us across the finish line. From the warm heart of Africa to you, Chair, we say Thank you very much, Chair.

Thank you very much, Malawi, for your statement, and thank you very much, Africa, for your support. Ghana, you have the floor, please.

Chair, although my delegation, like others, would have liked to see progress in certain areas of the text— for us, this would have been elaboration on how the DTGs will be discussed in the future permanent mechanism We welcome all the efforts that have been made to present a delicately balanced conference paper. This indeed has been no small feat. Ambassador Kofor, your exemplary leadership, wealth of experience and wisdom delivered with a touch of humor, has been evident from the very beginning. On a personal note, I leave this process with a reminder to approach life and work in bilateral and multilateral processes with cautious, hopeful optimism, a term you have so often used. I would have definitely liked to see you in a brighter outfit this week. However, we take it as it is. I trust this will be sent to your holidays, which you've been looking forward to. We acknowledge that this OEWG has been a consensus-building measure and led to tangible outcomes. My delegation joins others in expressing sincerest appreciation to your entire team, as echoed by others. Matthew, Catherine, Virginia, and all the unsung heroes working diligently behind the scenes, thank you very much. To this end, Garda would like to join other colleagues in thanking the Women in Cyber Fellowship for the support provided to women to have an opportunity to be part of the process. To all those who conceptualized the program and put in tireless effort to build capacity, we say thank you. Thank you for ensuring that women did not just take up space in this room, but we contributed meaningfully to this process, this process that has been extremely transformative. It has turned technocrats into diplomats and turned diplomats and policymakers into technocrats. As we continue to strengthen our capacity to engage in meaningful dialogue and navigate future processes to address existing and potential threats, we will reference this moment as proof that with patience and collaboration, we are able to work together.

Mr.

Chair, to conclude, Ghana will continue to work in a spirit of flexibility in the future permanent mechanism, and as such, we look forward to a safe and digital and secure digital future. I thank you very much, Mr. Chair.

Thank you very much, Ghana, for your very kind statement. I think I'll need to go to Accra to I'll have to refresh my wardrobe to look for some colourful clothes, but thank you very much. Friends, we still have about 15 speakers. This is how I intend to proceed. At this point, we will proceed to the next agenda item, which is the consideration of the draft procedural report. I think it's important that we have that report adopted, and then after that I'll return So, distinguished delegates, with your permission, we shall now move to the consideration of the draft procedural report of the Open-Ended Working Group as contained in document A/AC292/2025L1. And let me, by way of background, explain that the procedural report has a section on introduction, attendance, it describes the offices of the meeting, which is namely the chair, the organization of work, the documentation, proceedings of the working group, and the final section which says that the working group adopted its final report. It's a procedural report, it is not substantive, and in keeping with the practice of the Working Group, we will now proceed to have it adopted. I see no objections. It is so decided. May I also take it that it is the wish of the Working Group to authorize the Chair to finalize the report? It's so decided. Thank you. Return to the speakers list, and at this point I think we do need to stick to 2 minutes, and I kindly invite you to please do your best to be as succinct as possible and do send us your final statements, if that is a good way to capture your positions. Colombia, to be followed by Fiji.

Thank you, Chair. My delegation wishes to congratulate you and to recognize your leadership of this OEWG over the last 4 years. We are gratified to see the outcome of your efforts taking concrete form today through the adoption by consensus of the final report of this group and the creation of the permanent mechanism that will guide discussions on the use and security of ICTs under the UN framework. For Colombia, the most important achievement has been to achieve an overall balance across the different elements making up the report, which means that we can take it as a whole even though it doesn't really represent an endpoint in itself but rather accumulation of processes, previous APRs, and all of your efforts are part of this important package of results. We'd also like to thank you for the importance that you gave to the capacity building group whose work is going to be essential in strengthening the capacity of developing states in a practical way to ensure the functioning of the Future Permanent Mechanism. This group was a concrete example of how to be more inclusive and results-oriented. As reiterated by you, Chair, on many occasions, consensus cannot be taken for granted. It is fragile, especially in the current circumstances, and this is why we extend thanks to member states who are present here who have together shown flexibility and a spirit of compromise, adjusting to current circumstances. And we have shown how multilateralism can prevail over differences to achieve a joint result. Today, we can all be certain that we have made a contribution to international peace and security, as demonstrated by all of the statements that went before me, I wish to highlight, recognize, and celebrate as the delegation of Colombia the leadership and meaningful participation of women in this working group. Their contributions were crucial to building trust, finding innovative solutions, and reflecting the priorities of their delegations in the work of our group. And here we highlight the creation of the Women in Cyber Fellowship, that actively promoted gender balance in this space devoted to security or analysis of ICT. We thank regional organizations and civil society for their contributions to this and over the past years that have allowed us to go deeper in our understanding on many topics. I thank you, Chair.

Thank you, Colombia, for your statement. Fiji, to be followed by France.

Thank you, Chair. Chair, I have the honor to deliver this statement on behalf of a cross-regional group comprising Australia, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Fiji, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Kiribati, Latvia, Luxembourg, Mexico, Moldova, Netherlands, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Thailand, the United Nations, and Vietnam. Chair, as outlined in the working paper our group submitted to this Working Group in February, we reaffirm the critical importance of the full, meaningful, and equitable participation and leadership of women in all decision-making processes. related to the use of ICTs. In this respect, our group welcomes the references to gender included in the final report. We also wish to highlight the valuable role of the Women in International Security and Cyberspace Fellowship, which has enabled more women to engage meaningfully in the work of this OEWG. We believe the text presents a balanced and accurate reflection of the significant role that women have played in this OEWG. and will continue to play in all future ICT-related discussions, including with the Permanent Mechanism. Inclusive and gender-responsive approaches are not only a matter of equity; they are essential to building a secure, resilient, and representative international cyber governance framework. We look forward to continued collaboration to ensure these principles are embedded in the foundation of our collective work. Thank you, Chair. Chair, I also seek your indulgence if I could please give remarks, a few remarks in our national capacity. Chair Fiji fully aligns with the statement delivered by Tonga on behalf of the Pacific Island Forums and also wishes to deliver brief remarks in our national capacity. We also echo other delegations in our sincere appreciation to you, Chair, for your thoughtful leadership in navigating us through these challenging times. A massive vinaka vakalevu. For the Pacific and indeed for Fiji, this forum has been a key priority in voicing our lived realities, addressing our compounded crises, informing and synergizing our domestic and regional efforts such as Fiji's National Digital Strategy and the regional Lakatoy Declaration, and continuing to build trust and confidence amongst member states. Our final report is an excellent document for the work that must be done to ensure that the United Nations maintains its place as the beating heart of global security in the face of unprecedented and to technological changes. And our heartfelt thanks also goes to the A-team, to Clarice, Matthew, Gillian, Catherine, Virginia, and the Secretariat for their meticulous efforts in providing support to all of us during our journey together. Chair, we reemphasize the Pacific Islands Forum Capacity Building Paper that was submitted in May, and as mentioned by Vanuatu earlier, we look forward to working with all member states and stakeholders in this regard. Chair, Fiji sees substantive value coming out of our incremental steps and especially now with our final report, and we've communicated this consistently during our journey. At the beginning of our journey, Fiji was represented by one delegate. Today, I'm proud to say that we're a delegation of 4 that have traveled from Fiji, and we'd like to record our thanks for our partners. But this also demonstrates the trust and the confidence among states that have been building in our journey and the increased dedication and commitment among states. Fiji continues to remain steadfast in our commitment that we must advance our work and implement the action items under our consensus final report and ensuring a seamless transition into our next phase. Chair Fiji reiterates that our final report serves as a unifying force, much like the vast expanse of the Pacific Ocean, bringing together our collective aspirations, and we remain committed in our next phase of work together, the Global Mechanism. On a personal note, Chair, and having been part of this OAWG journey, it has been an absolute honored to work with you, your team, and the delegations here today who have turned into friends. On a final note, wishing everyone safe journeys back home. Vinaka vakalevu, Chair. Thank you.

Thank you very much, Fiji, for your statement. France, to be followed by Pakistan.

Mr. President.

Mr. Chair, my delegation aligns itself with the statement of the European Union, and I would like to to make the following remarks in its national capacity. Allow me at the outset to thank you most sincerely, you and your entire team, as well as secretariat and of course the interpreters, for your commitment and your efforts throughout the last 5 years. The successful conclusion of the work of this group is all to your credit and the constructive way in which you've always led our work. This consensus-based result is historic for work on the cyber issues in the first committee— first commission, and after more than 25 years of discussion and gradual consolidation of the normative framework for responsible behavior of states in cyberspace, will allow us to establish a global— a single global mechanism that is action-oriented. This report is not perfect, but as others have underscored, this is the very nature of diplomacy. In accordance with the constructive that my delegation has shown from the first to the last moments of this OEWG, France welcomes the adoption of this final report, which will become part of our collective heritage. With the transregional proposal of the program of action, France and its partners wanted to see— ensure that all states were able to implement this normative framework because it is our first line of collective defense against cyber threats. We are pleased that this report, especially the section on capacity building and how it interacts with the modalities of the global mechanism, create the conditions needed for significant progress in this regard. Mr. Chair, you can count on France to support the operationalization of this report through the resolution that you will be submitting to the First Commission this fall. This resolution will allow for the establishment of the global mechanism and a seamless transition toward 2026 and beyond. In closing, I would like to cite a very wise man that many of you know, Ambassador Henri Verdier, who said to me one day, you know, our goal is not to create a new mechanism at the UN. Our real goal is to strengthen our collective cybersecurity. Mr. Chair, distinguished colleagues, I hope that collectively We will not lose sight of this goal. Thank you.

Thank you very much, France, for your statement. Pakistan to be followed by Algeria. And dear friends, I have to do the unpleasant task of cutting off microphones, and I apologize for this. My humble, humble and sincere apologies. because I do want us to be able to complete by 1 PM and it's doable, but it is important that we give everyone a chance. So Pakistan, over to you. My apologies in advance and please let us have your full statement if you think that you need to put on record other points of view as well. You have the floor, please.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Dedication and tireless efforts of you and your team in this OEWG, as we have done in the past. We duly recognize your contribution to this process. Chair, the adoption of OEWG's final report is indeed a historic milestone, a hard-won achievement, and a victory for multilateralism. Today's success is a relief amidst geopolitical environment which has been less conducive to multilateralism. All of us have our share of disappointments, regrets, and reservations. However, as we said in our first intervention on Monday, for us and indeed for a large majority of countries, the foremost priority was to make a seamless transition to global mechanism. We hope that our decision today is a right step in this direction.

My apologies, Pakistan, to you. Sincere apologies. Algeria, to be followed by New Zealand.

Thank you, Mr.

Chair.

Algeria aligns itself with the statement delivered by Tunisia and Nigeria on behalf of the African Group. While Algeria shares the concerns expressed by the Arab Group and the African Group regarding the removal of dedicated space for discussing international law applicability in cyberspace and insufficient provision for capacity building, we have joined the consensus in the spirit of multilateral cooperation and our commitment to maintaining constructive dialogue within the UN framework. Having said that, my delegation wishes to express its profound gratitude for your outstanding leadership demonstrated throughout the 5-year mandate of the OEWG. We commend your efforts in ensuring that the OEWG has successfully fulfilled its mandate culminating with the adoption of a consensus outcome, which despite the stumbling blocks and shortfalls reflects our collective commitment to diplomacy and multilateralism. We reiterate our sincere appreciation to you, your team, the Secretariat, and the translation team, all of whom have worked tirelessly to achieve this outcome, and indeed the pocket square indicated a successful conclusion. I thank you.

Thank you very much, Algeria. New Zealand, to be followed by Ireland.

Thank you, Chair.

You started this week stating that you thought a narrow pathway to consensus was visible. At that time, perhaps not everyone shared your optimistic foresight. So today we're very pleased that your vision has become a reality, and even more so, we're pleased to see the strong support in the room for that vision. Of course, that doesn't mean we see perfection, but as you noted, the cause of multilateralism is not perfection. Today's consensus outcome is an important demonstration of our collective commitment to ongoing dialogue on our differences and to advance responsible state behavior in cyberspace. Thank you very much for your leadership and the excellent work of your team.

Thank you very much, New Zealand, for your brevity. Ireland, to be followed by Germany.

Thank you very much, dear Chair. Ireland aligns with the EU statement but wanted to come in to thank you, your team, the Secretariat, and the translators for your extraordinary efforts both this week and over past years. Your careful, thoughtful, and effective chairmanship has led to this consensus outcome and threading the narrow pathway, as you said, to success through the many conflicting opinions reflected here. This is a success for you, for us all, but also more broadly for the UN and for multilateralism. Of course, there were points we would have liked to see in the text, in particular on international law, IHL, and IHRL, where we consider our many discussions in this process were not fully reflected in the text. But there is also much that is good in the text and which we strongly support. What you have achieved here provides the base and tools from which we can build the new global mechanism. We look forward to the challenging but vitally important work to come in the new mechanism, drawing on the work done over the past 5 years, and we also look forward to working with all here in that regard. Thank you.

Thank you very much, Ireland, for your brevity as well. Germany, to be followed by Greece.

Yesterday you alluded to the open-ended working group being the first step on a 1,000-mile journey. We believe with the decision today we have made a major, important, and yes, historic step forward, ensuring a seamless transition to a single-track, inclusive, consensus-based, and action-oriented permanent mechanism. And we thank you and commend you and your team for your tireless efforts and leadership steering us towards convergence and to consensus today. Even if it's a major step forward, forward, more steps will need to follow on this journey, and we have to remain ambitious to advance and implement a framework for responsible state behavior in cyberspace. And we look forward to take this on in the new single-track global mechanism. In addition to that, and for reasons of brevity, we would just like to align with the statement of the European Union and support the statement made by Fiji on behalf of a cross-regional group. To conclude, I want to again join others in wholeheartedly thanking you and congratulating you and your team and the Secretariat for your outstanding work. Thank you.

Thank you very much, Germany, for your brevity. Greece, to be followed by Albania.

Thank you, sir, for giving me the floor. Greece aligns with the statement delivered by the European Union. I would like to take this opportunity and extend our deepest gratitude to you and your team for all your efforts and commitment driving this group from the beginning all the way through the finish line. I am certain one of the first challenges that the future mechanism will face is finding a Chair of the same caliber. For our delegation, it has been a privilege and an honor being part of this process, a process we see as a milestone not only to the subject at hand, but to multilateralism as general. Thank you, Chair.

Thank you very much, Greece, for your brevity. Albania, to be followed by Papua New Guinea.

Honorable Chair, distinguished colleagues, on behalf of Albania, I am honored to take the floor at this historic moment. After 5 years of dedicated work and 5 intensive days of negotiation, the Open-Ended Working Group has achieved consensus on a meaningful and action-oriented final report. This is a remarkable success for multilateralism and for the United Nations, especially as we mark the 80th anniversary. Albania strongly welcomes this outcome. We believe that despite the challenges, geopolitical context, and the complexity of issues at stake, our collective efforts have delivered a report which consolidates the progress made throughout the years, reaffirms the importance of international law on cyberspace, and strengthens the framework of responsible state behavior. We are particularly pleased that the report emphasized capacity-building, confidence-building measures, and the importance of inclusive participation. These are essential to building trust, resilience, and security in the digital environment. The creation— the concrete actions and cooperative measures contained in this report will help all states, regardless of their level of development, to address the evolving security challenges in the use of ICT. This is a foundation upon which the future Permanent Mechanism can build, ensuring continuity and progress in our shared work. Albania is proud to have contributed to this progress and remains committed to an open, secure, stable, accessible, and peaceful ICT environment. Let us continue to uphold the spirit of consensus and cooperation as we move working together. Thank you, Chair.

Thank you very much, Albania, for your kind statement. Papua New Guinea.

Mr. Chair, Papua New Guinea aligns itself with the statement made earlier by the Pacific Island Forum and makes the following remarks in our national capacity. We echo the sentiments expressed of your stellar leadership and commitment to the framework for responsible state behavior in cyberspace, leading to today's successful adoption of the final report. We thank you for guiding this process with dedication and inclusivity. We also commend the excellent efforts of your able and professional team. We recognize the work that has gone into finding a balance. We can see where compromises have been struck. We also acknowledge the generous support of donors to the Women, in International Security and Cyberspace Fellowships for enabling more women, including from small island developing states like mine, to meaningfully engage in the work of the OEWG. I thank you, Chair.

Thank you very much, Papua New Guinea. Philippines, to be followed by Sierra Leone.

Thank you, Mr.

Chair.

The Philippine delegation aligns itself with the ASEAN statement, and in my national capacity, I wish to extend our sincere congratulations to you, Mr. Chair, for your exceptional leadership, and to your dedicated team and the Secretariat for their tireless work, professionalism, and inclusive spirit throughout the years. The Philippines particularly appreciates the inclusion of initiatives such as the ICT Security Capacity Building Catalog in the final report— adopted final report. This reflects the maturing of our collective understanding of capacity building and provides a stronger foundation for operationalizing targeted needs-based support in the global mechanism, particularly for member states with limited ICT security capabilities. Philippines also expresses its appreciation to all member states for the flexibility and the constructive engagement demonstrated in the final stages of this process. The willingness to compromise and build consensus has allowed the group to deliver a credible and forward-looking outcome. Mr. Chair, the Philippines stands ready to support the continued strengthening of this process for delivering results that reflect balanced, inclusive, and future-oriented cooperation. Terima kasih, maraming salamat.

Thank you very much, Philippines, for your kind statement. Sierra Leone, please.

Thank you, Mr. Chair, for giving us the floor. I'll try to stay brief. We want to thank you and your outstanding team for steering the ship over the years. We thank the Women in Cyber Fellowship for— and their partners for their support as well. Uh, Mr. Chair, I would like to say that, um, if patience was a protocol, yours would be end-to-end encrypted. We thank you.

Thank you very much, Sierra Leone, for your very, very kind words. Pakistan, for a brief intervention, do you want to come back? Okay, thank you very much, Pakistan. Thank you so much for your kind, kind consideration, all of you, and your brevity. There's one other agenda item that remains on our work, which is other matters, and it's my understanding that there are really no other matters that needs to be discussed. May I take it that it is the case? Australia, for very brief remarks.

Public service announcement. Together with the Secretariat, the Australian delegation has tracked participation statistics over the course of this week. It's a really important gender marker for measuring the degree of gender equality in the interventions made in this forum. And for context, when the OAU began, similarly to other processes in the International Security Pillar, about one-third of interventions were made by women. And since then, we've been tracking a very encouraging trend. And I want to confirm this figure, but I think it is 55%. Oh, it was 55% in February, and it's 53% at this session. And It is very encouraging that we are now really getting gender balance into our interventions, and we'd like to commend all delegations for their efforts in promoting inclusive representation. Thank you.

Thank you very, very much, Australia, for the public service announcement and for tracking the data, and most of all, for thanking— for your work in this particular domain of encouraging and facilitating the participation of women delegates in our process, not just Australia, but I think there's a cross-regional group. And I take this opportunity to really commend all the women in Cyber Fellows who have been involved in this process, but not only that, but all the women delegates who have been involved in this process. Your role has been really critical in getting us to where we are in this process now. Thank you. So, distinguished delegates, we have now completed all the agenda items and therefore our deliberations for the final session. So, with your indulgence, I'd like to make a few closing remarks as Chair of the Working Group. It would be remiss on my part if I do not at this point, as Chair of this process, thank my own very, very excellent team of colleagues who have been with me. So before you give them a round of applause, I'd like to invite them to rise, Dr. Jillian Goh, Matthew Wong, Clarice Lim, and Dennis Tsai.

Thank you.

I must say that I'm very, very proud and so, so lucky to have them on my team. Gillian is an institution in the UN system, and the fact that she is from Singapore and has now moved back to Singapore is a source of great pride for me. And thank you for joining us. Gillian and Matthew and Clarice are really Cyber Matthew and Cyber Clarice, and I We really could not have done this without them, but our secret weapon this week was our intern from the Foreign Ministry, Denise Chan, who is the young lady at the back. So she will be, in some ways or other, be involved in the future mechanism, which now has a name, Global Mechanism. Perhaps we could call it by a nickname, GMAC, perhaps? UN Global Mechanism. GMAC for short, perhaps. Second, I also want to thank the excellent, wonderful people on the podium. A lot of you have mentioned it, but it would be remiss on my part if I, as chair of the process, do not recognize the incredible work that they have done over the last few years and the patience they have shown to me, the support they have given, the very late nights including yesterday very late in the evening going through the documents before the emails were sent out. So Catherine Priceman, please. Please rise, Catherine. So thank you, thank you very much, Catherine, and of course Secretary Alexander Lomia, Natalia Uliana. Natalia is behind. Please rise. Alexander ahead. And of course, Virginia Browning. Gina, where are you? Yeah. And also Oreo Del Basto and Kathleen, who are there at the secretariat team. And the excellent conference officers who are in the room by the side over there, and also the wonderful, wonderful interpreters. They have been consistently giving us extra minutes, so thank you very much. Thank you. I always start the meeting by wanting to finish at 1, but it always exceeds the time allocated, as it is likely to do today. So very grateful to the wonderful work that they do, the interpreters, because without the interpreters you're not going to have multilingualism, and without multilingualism you're not going to have multilateralism. So I think it's a very important part of the work of the UN. And another person, Under-Secretary-General Izumi Nakamitsu of UNODA, has been a stalwart of support. I just texted her to say that we have adopted the report. She's very pleased, and I think I wanted to take this opportunity to place on record my deep appreciation to UNODA and Under-Secretary-General Secretary-General and High Representative for Disarmament, Ms. Izumi Nakamitsu. Friends, a lot has been said and of course you know me, I can go on and on, but you know, I want to be as brief as possible, but I think there are some things that need to be said. The outcome today is a win for multilateralism. It is a win for the United Nations. It is of course a win for our own process, the OEWG, and it is a step into the future of creating the global mechanism. So I think this is something that all of us can be incredibly satisfied with, and this is the result of your work. I have also been saying that at the UN, success is not guaranteed, but failure is not an option. And I think, like any process at the UN, we have to work for success, we have to work for consensus, which is never granted, and I think this process has demonstrated that when there is a commitment and willingness to listen to each other and when there is a spirit of flexibility, it is possible to take small steps forward. The UN is an exercise in incrementalism and the UN is a very bold experiment started 80 years ago and in a variety of domains it is important that we give life to the spirit of the UN Charter by making things work. And I also wanted to share with you that looking back at this process, which started in 1998, as some of you pointed out, and some of you have been involved for more than a few months or years but decades, we have done some incredible work. The GGE process laid some foundation stones, but looking back, I think there was a wisdom in beginning the OED OEWG process. I know the OEWG process was contested when it was first initiated and launched, but there is a certain wisdom in the process in the sense that it made things inclusive. It was no longer a limited circle of representatives, experts, 25, 30 people discussing issues. Those are important, but multilateralism means making things inclusive, making things transparent, and that is helpful to build trust, and that is helpful and needed to build confidence. So we made that transition from the GGE to the OEWG, and the 2 OEWGs, now have produced consensus reports, and that has laid a very strong foundation for a single-track process leading into the future, the UN Global Mechanism. But mechanisms and institutions are only there as they are designed, but they will not fulfill their potential if there is no commitment, there is no patient cultivation of ideas and relationships to give the institutions the potential that they have. So, my friends, the global mechanism is very promising, filled with great potential, but the success of the global mechanism It depends on all of you. This leads me to the next point, which is that I am so incredibly grateful that so many of you have contributed to the consensus that we have in this process, especially today. Each one of you have made it possible. In spite of the statements you have made to register the position of your delegation and I know that behind the nameplates there are individuals who are committed to this process, and that I think is the reason for the consensus outcome we have today. So I'm incredibly grateful for that, and I thank each one of you for making this consensus outcome possible. Now, there are a lot of things that I wanted to say and scribbled But I really want to look forward in terms of what we do in the First Committee. My intention is to present a very simple draft resolution in the First Committee, and my only plea to you is that that resolution should be kept simple. Please do not look at that resolution as a means to reopen or relitigate issues. The First Committee resolution that will endorse the final report of this Working Group is intended to formalize and have things approved by the General Assembly and then to— in the Fifth Committee and for the mechanism to come into force starting from here. So the First Committee resolution that Singapore will table once again, as we did in previous years, please look at it as a procedural enabling resolution to endorse the outcome. So it is not my intention to see that as a reopening of discussions. discussions on the outcome document. The other thing that I would kindly request is that in the First Committee I'd like to appeal to all delegations to just have one single resolution on ICT security, not multiple resolutions, because we now have made the decision to have a single-track process and we can't have a single-track process and then have multiple So let's have just one single simple enabling resolution to endorse the outcome, and that will then open the door for the beginning of the global mechanism to start its work, starting with the organizational session which needs to be convened no later than. March next year. So that's the other point that I wanted to make as well. And final point is about stakeholders. I know that this has been a debate, but leaving aside the question of modalities— the modalities are what they are— it will enable to some degree the participation of stakeholders, not to a perfect degree, but it will nevertheless enable them to participate. But my advice to you as a friend of this process, but also as your friend, is to keep an open mind to the participation of stakeholders. If you want to make the potential of the global mechanism great and if you want everyone in the world to understand what the global mechanism can do and what we have done is to really also find ways to engage stakeholders in the process. So that is my humble advice to you as your friend. Of course, there will be differences in points of view. There are also differences in points of view between governments. But I would also appeal to you that it is important to some extent that we continue to have a strong degree of mutual trust, mutual respect. Even if there is not so much trust, I think we need to start from the premise of respect. I think that's what multilateralism is about. Even if there is deep distrust, I think we need to start from the point of view of respect, and that means listening to people. And I know that in this process it has been very difficult for some of you to even talk to someone else or be seen to be talking to someone else. These are the consequences of geopolitics, and it is my hope that at some point in the future at a place like the United Nations, in a process that is run from the United Nations, that people will be able to talk to each other with respect in spite of whatever differences there might be, because it is this talking to each other with respect and listening to each other with respect that is so much needed, that is so much needed not only for the UN, but I think to make the world a better place. I see that I'm nearing 1:10, 2 minutes left, and I think I also need a microphone cutoff. Otherwise, it's an occupational hazard of diplomats that they don't know when to stop. But just to say that it's been an incredible journey. Thank you very much. I wish you all a safe journey back home, please stay in touch. I will no longer be on the podium, but I will be perhaps on the other side, on the seat, when the next— when the Global Mechanism meets. And do not forget the family photo. I think we have the photographer in town, and so please remain here for a very quick family photo. In the meantime, thank you very much for meeting us again. Thank you.