United Nations General Assembly A /AC.290/2021/CRP.3 Conference room paper 10 March 2021 English only Open-ended Working Group on Developments in the Field of Information and Telecommunications in the Context of International Security Third substantive session 8–12 March 2021 Chair’s Summary Australian comments: the purpose of these comments is to ensure key Australian positions summarized in this document are reflected accurately. These comments do not represent Australia’s complete position, nor provide Australian responses to the views of other states represented herein, nor do these comments engage on the question of which views summarized were the views of ‘states’ vs ‘some states’ (noting para 3 below, that this document ‘should not be seen as reflecting the consensus view of States on any specific points covered in it’). A. Context 1. The OEWG presented a historic opportunity for all States to engage on equal footing under the auspices of the United Nations in focused and sustained discussions on matters related to ICTs in the context of international security. In addition to the many areas of agreement reflected in its report, through its inclusive and transparent discussions, the OEWG has served as a valuable measure to strengthen international peace and security through building trust, confidence and understandings between States, as well as helping to establish a global diplomatic network of national experts. The active and broad engagement of all delegations has demonstrated the determination of States to continue to work together on this subject of fundamental importance to all. 2. All the sessions of the OEWG were characterized by substantive, interactive exchanges among States, as well as with civil society, the private sector, academia and the technical community. The commitment demonstrated by States and other stakeholders throughout the work of the OEWG, with growing engagement even as some of its meetings transitioned to a virtual format, is an undeniable indication of the increasingly universal relevance of the topics under its consideration as well as the growing recognition of the urgent need to collectively address the threats to international security posed by the malicious use of ICTs. 3. This summary is issued under the responsibility of the Chair and reflects his understanding of the main points that were discussed during the meetings of the Open-ended Working Group. It may not reflect the full contributions of all delegations and should not be seen as reflecting the consensus view of States on any specific points covered in it. The full compendium of national statements and proposals that were submitted for circulation is available at https://www.un.org/disarmament/open-ended-working-group.