1. Introduction The Netherlands is committed to keeping cyberspace open, safe and free. Among other things, this means taking full advantage of the opportunities that digitalisation offers our economy and society, confronting threats, and protecting fundamental rights and values. Given the transnational nature of cyberspace, safeguarding these interests has an international dimension. Our foreign policy has a direct influence on the Netherlands’ position as a model country, a partner and a place to do business. In releasing this International Cyber Strategy the government is fulfilling the pledge it made in its response to advisory reports by the Advisory Council on International Affairs (AIV) (‘The Internet: A Global Free Space with Limited State Control’) and by the Scientific Council for Government Policy (WRR) (‘The Public Core of the Internet’). The International Cyber Strategy is complementary to and in line with the National Cybersecurity Strategy (NCSS 2), the Digital Agenda 2016-17, the Human Rights Strategy 2, the Defence Cyber Strategy and the Netherlands’ International Security Strategy. Contents Chapter 2 explores the international interests, threats and challenges at play in this area and presents the vision and principles underlying the Strategy. Chapter 3 explains the various types of international partnerships relating to cyber policy and reviews the prospects for the further development of policy. Chapter 4 sets out the policy priorities for further enhancing the Netherlands’ already strong position in the digital domain. 2. Interests and vision Cyberspace is a field where international interests, threats and challenges intersect. Against that backdrop, this chapter will first discuss, in succession, the interests, threats and challenges relevant to this field and then the Netherlands’ overall vision and principles. 2.1 International interests The government has identified a number of fundamental interests in the international arena with regard to cyberspace. As stated in NCSS 2 the government views these interests in terms of freedom, security and growth. 2.1.1 Social and economic growth Interest: The Netherlands should be capable of seizing the social and economic opportunities offered by global digitalisation and taking further advantage of them. The Netherlands is one of the most connected countries in the world, with a competitive market for data centres and web hosting services. This makes it perfectly positioned to profit from digitalisation. In the Netherlands, information and communication technology (ICT) is a significant contributor to economic growth, and it is increasingly used in all sectors of the economy and society. As a result, the Netherlands is evolving into a digital knowledge and information society. Interest: The Netherlands benefits from an open, non-fragmented internet, in which information can circulate freely. Open governance and ‘permissionless innovation’ are crucial to the development of the internet. Thanks in part to effective self-organisation and self-regulation, the internet has become a shared global infrastructure that is accessible to all. Internationally, the Netherlands is keen to continue safeguarding the development, openness, availability, reliability, security and integrity of the internet. 2.1.2 Fundamental rights and freedoms Interest: The Netherlands benefits from the existence of global protections for human rights online. AVT17/BZ122203 2