Nothing 'Wacky' about Merkel's 'Courageous' E.U. Internet Plan (Le
Nouvel Observateur, France)
"The French press and an overwhelming majority of the German and English press have been critical of Angela Merkel, denouncing her vision of the Internet as 'wacky' and 'unrealistic.' ... To commit herself as she has shows courage and political skill ... The massive use of American digital solutions, (Google, Apple, Microsoft, etc.) is the royal path by which the NSA has managed to conduct large-scale spying on the world. ... Merkel wants to compete by encouraging the emergence of European digital champions capable of building infrastructure for both business and citizens so as not to be too dependent on the U.S., which has a monopoly in cyberspace."
Angela Merkel has an Internet plan that would protect European data from the NSA - but politically and practically, does it have any chance of becoming a reality?
While
visiting the Elysée Palace on Feb. 19, Angela Merkel
proposed to François Hollande the creation of a European Internet network. The
measure, first advocated by the chancellor on Feb. 15, has attracted lots of
criticism in the French media. Maxime Pinard, a researcher at IRIS, believes this criticism to be
unfounded.
Since mid-February, the French press and an
overwhelming majority of the German and English press have been critical of
recent statements by Chancellor Angela Merkel, denouncing her vision of the
Internet as "wacky" and "unrealistic."
A tiny fraction of the specialized trade press has
offered more measured criticism, noting rightly that for the moment, these are only
statements that will be further discussed by Angela Merkel and François
Hollande.
The
courage and political skill of Angela Merkel
In any case, the chancellor's primary objective
has largely been achieved: to generate media interest in issues that rarely meet
with the enthusiasm of citizens (data protection and Internet governance). To
commit herself as she has and make proposals (some of which are questionable,
as we will see) on issues about which politicians usually lack expertise,
certainly shows courage and political skill.
What's it all about? The chancellor wants to
build, with her French counterpart (which suggests that on this subject, the
Franco-German couple could again become a driving force for European
integration), "communication networks in Europe" to ensure a higher
level of data security for European Internet users - no longer utilizing the NSA-linked
American digital infrastructure.
Let's note in passing that the chancellor was
extremely upset by the NSA's wiretapping of her communications, and is unlikely
to be as accommodating on the matter as the French president appears to be.
The fundamental problem with the chancellor's plan
is that it's a mix of interesting, but very different ideas, which creates an image
of a "catch-all," and the sense that her approach is destined to fail.
Indeed, as experts are quick to recall, most
digital communications are already at an intra-European level. However, the massive
use of American digital solutions, (Google, Apple, Microsoft, etc.) is clearly the
royal path by which the NSA has managed to conduct large-scale spying on the
world. Moreover, regardless of the measures or strategies adopted, digital
spying will never be completely preventable. At best, it can be inhibited.
Several
fundamental ideas for the development of the Internet
Angela Merkel insists, however, following Edward
Snowden's revelations, on several fundamental ideas for developing the Internet:
1. We must rethink the storage of digital information,
which is often is housed in places where legislation on personal data is too flexible,
by building European data centers answerable to European regulations, and
against which European states and authorities have sufficient legal tools to
exercise control (which is not really the case today).
Does this mean that we should force America's
digital giants to store their data in Europe? This is a non-issue, as under the
Patriot Act, these companies are accountable to the American services, with all
of the abuses we have already witnessed. However, the chancellor's idea is not
absurd insofar as it is only a way to justify her real purpose ...
Posted By Worldmeets.US
2. In fact, and it is probably here that the
project becomes really challenging, Angela Merkel wants to compete with the United
States by encouraging the emergence of European digital champions capable of
building technological infrastructure for both business and citizens. The idea
is not to be too dependent on the United States, which has a monopoly in
cyberspace, both at the physical level (infrastructure) and at the informational
level (media, social networks ...).
European
Internet users are prepared to accept change
This implies several areas of large-scale
action: a strong political initiative which cannot be reduced to just the Franco-German
couple. That means assurances from all E.U. countries that they are on the same
page (something that won't be easy with American pressure), and support for
technological innovation capable of launching digital giants in Europe.
These "technological gems" exist, but
they need to coalesce in order to coordinate and reach a critical mass for them
to work across the entire European market. This also requires a rethink of
digital taxation, which is a very sensitive issue, but necessary because
European societies face massive tax dumping organized by Google, Facebook,
Amazon, Microsoft [the companies avoid taxation by parking their profits in
low-tax havens like Ireland]...
An argument often raised against the project are
the choices of users, who favor the American services. This is both true and
false: while the U.S. giants have very comfortable market shares in Europe
(unlike in China and Russia, for example, where national digital actors are
well established), following Snowden's revelations, European Internet users
would be willing to change if alternatives as effective as the American
services were offered.
Some see in the German chancellor's statements
the end of the Internet as we know it, with the establishment of "Schengennetworks." Tim Berners-Lee,
inventor of the World Wide Web, fears fragmentation - a nationalization of
cyberspace. In the same vein, European Commissioner Neelie
Kroes rejects "control of the Internet by
governments," and recalls the fundamentals of the Web: openness,
transparency, and sharing.
Europe needs
to catch up with the United States
This vision of cyberspace is widely shared but has
several flaws: cyberspace is eminently political. States, therefore, have a
role to play. The fragmentation or "balkanization" of the Web is
already a reality: China is creating its own digital infrastructure to both
better control its Internet users, but also and especially not to be dependent
on the United States. In fact, the Internet that we know, often presented as
universal, is rather Americanized.
The European Union cannot and should not accept
lagging behind the United States in the digital domain, as this has an impact
on both its economic competitiveness and its own security, as shown by
Snowden's revelations.
Faced with, at the very least, a critical
economic situation, targeted support for the development of digital
technologies could be a bridge to significant growth. What was done in the
aviation sector with Airbus could be feasible in the Internet industry. Certainly
there are many obstacles to overcome, but Europe has resources. The results would
not be visible for several years, but the longer the launch of the this
politico-digital revolution is delayed, the further Europe will lag behind other
digital powers.
In addition, rather than see this as a threat
to digital freedom, a European project could instead be a means to ensure the digital
integrity of each European citizen through legal safeguards that take into
account national legislation. That would avoid having to "choose"
between the American and Chinese models ...
One can only hope that Angela Merkel's
statements aren't just a show, and that instead, she has found a way to kick-start
the European machine on a major project.
*Maxime Pinard is director of Cyberstrategia and a researcher at IRIS (Institut de Relations Internationales
et Strategiques)
