PILL A R I V: A DVA NCE A M ER IC A N IN FLU ENCE flow of information online that enhances international trade and commerce, fosters innovation, and strengthens both national and international security. As such, United States Internet freedom principles are inextricably linked to our national security. Internet freedom is also a key guiding principle with respect to other United States foreign policy issues, such as cybercrime and counterterrorism efforts. Given its importance, the United States will encourage other countries to advance Internet freedom through venues such as the Freedom Online Coalition, of which the United States is a founding member. Internet governance is characterized by transparent, bottom-up, consensus-driven processes and enables governments, the private sector, civil society, academia, and the technical community to participate on equal footing. The United States Government will defend the open, interoperable nature of the Internet in multilateral and international fora through active engagement in key organizations, such as the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, the Internet Governance Forum, the United Nations, and the International Telecommunication Union. WORK WITH LIKE-MINDED COUNTRIES, INDUSTRY, COMMUNICATIONS ACADEMIA, AND CIVIL SOCIETY: The United States will continue to work with like-minded countries, industry, civil society, and other stakeholders to advance human rights and Internet freedom globally and to counter authoritarian efforts to censor and influence Internet development. The United States Government will continue to support civil society through integrated support for technology development, digital safety training, policy advocacy, and research. These programs aim to enhance the ability of individual citizens, activists, human rights defenders, independent journalists, civil society organizations, and marginalized populations to safely access the uncensored Internet and promote Internet freedom at the local, regional, national, and international levels. INTERNET CONNECTIVITY: The United States will promote communications infrastructure and Internet connectivity that is open, interoperable, reliable, and secure. Such investment will provide greater opportunities for American firms to compete while countering the influence of statist, top-down government interventions in areas of strategic competition. It will also protect America’s security and commercial interests by strengthening United States industry’s competitive position in the global digital economy. The Administration will also support and promote open, industry-led standards activities based on sound technological principles. PROMOTE PROMOTE INTEROPERABLE AND AND RELIABLE INFRASTRUCTURE MAINTAIN MARKETS AND FOR UNITED STATES INGENUITY WORLDWIDE: American innovators and security professionals have contributed significantly in designing products and services that improve our ability to communicate and interact globally and that protect communications infrastructure, data, and devices worldwide. The United States will continue to promote markets for American ingenuity overseas, including for emerging technologies that can lower the cost of security. The United States will also advise on infrastructure deploy- PROMOTE A MULTI-STAKEHOLDER MODEL OF INTERNET GOVERNANCE: The United States will continue to actively participate in global efforts to ensure that the multi-stakeholder model of Internet governance prevails against attempts to create state-centric frameworks that would undermine openness and freedom, hinder innovation, and jeopardize the functionality of the Internet. The multi-stakeholder model of 25