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National statement delivered by H.E. Mr. Linas Linkevičius, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Lithuania, at the United Nations Security Council Arria-formula Meeting "Cyber Stability, Conflict Prevention and Capacity Building".

Mr. President,

I would like to thank Estonia for convening this meeting and all briefers for their inputs for our discussion. 

While we are focusing our substantial efforts to global fight against COVID - 19 pandemic, the existing challenges to global security persist. Malicious cyber activities do not subside.  Among the targets are objects of critical infrastructure and the health sector.  Both are extremely important in tackling the spread of pandemic. 

Therefore, we fully support the recent statement by the EU High Representative Mr.  Josep Borell in which the EU and Member States „condemn this malicious behavior in cyberspace, express solidarity with all countries that are victims of malicious cyber activities and underline their continued support to increase global cyber resilience“.

Mr. President,

Cyber security today is an integral part of our life. All of us have to be concerned, because at any moment anyone of us can become a target of malicious cyber act.  For example, the Not Petya cyber-attack of  2017 caused unprecedented chaos and devastating damage. In the meantime, non - state or state actors carry out on regular basis such malicious actions. They are even more sophisticated, supplemented with hybrid and information war elements. 

Recently, the Georgian authorities announced that last October a massive cyber-attack had taken place against its state institutions and media, and that investigations have shown that Russia was responsible for it.

Lithuania together with other like-minded countries condemned this attack and expressed solidarity and support.  However, in such cases solidarity is not enough. One has to work together on global level, to expand circle of countries that support more effective attribution, prevention and accountability for cyber-crimes. In this respect Lithuania welcomes efforts to strengthen accountability for malicious cyber activities, including by applying relevant sanctions regimes, which could also send a clear deterrent message.

We have also to involve industry, academia, and intensify capacity building in those regions and countries which need to improve its cyber security.

We need a global rules - based cyber security order and the UN is most suitable forum for that.  Lithuania fully supports effective implementation of the strategic framework for conflict prevention, cooperation and stability in cyberspace, which is based on the application of existing international law, including the UN Charter in its entirety. In our view, no new and additional instruments or formats are needed.

Combined with voluntary adherence to responsible behavior and further development of confidence building measures it would make the cyberspace more stable and more secure.   

Thank you.

Vilnius, 22 May, Vilnius