HIGH-LEVEL PLENARY SESSION

UNITED NATIONS CONVENTION AGAINST CYBERCRIME SIGNING CEREMONY & HIGH-LEVEL CONFERENCE

HANOI, VIET NAM, 25 OCTOBER 2025

REMARKS

BY

1. E. MR. Md GOLAM SARWAR,

SECRETARY GENERAL OF SAARC

Hon’ble Chair, H.E. Mr. Luong Cuong, President of the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam

H.E. Mr. António Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations,

Heads of State,

Senior government leaders,

Representatives of regional and international organizations.

Distinguished Delegates,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

It is indeed an honour and privilege for me to address this august forum – where the dignitaries from all over the world have gathered in this beautiful city Hanoi to witness the signing ceremony of the United Nations Convention against Cybercrime. I bring you warm greetings on behalf of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation – SAARC – and express my sincere appreciation to the organizer for organizing this event on cybercrime which has been a major challenge of the day. I would also like to take this opportunity to commend the Government of the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam for hosting this important event and for its continued contributions to multilateral dialogues on issues of common concerns at global level.

Excellencies,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Past few decades have witnessed remarkable surge in the innovation and application of information and communication technologies. ICTs have emerged as an inalienable element of globalization and has served enormously in fostering productivity, efficiency and competitiveness of economies around the world. No wonder, countries have rapidly embraced digitization with a view to modernize their societies and realize their human and social development aspirations.

The fact however remains that ICT is a double-edged sword. New security risks and vulnerabilities have also raised their ugly heads in equal measure. The exploitation of cyberspace bears directly on the scale, speed and scope of criminal offences, including offences related to terrorism and transnational organized crime, and the threats could be as grave and malicious as military cyber operations, violations of privacy, data exploitation, surveillance, disinformation, cyberespionage, and cyberterrorism. When met with fragile infrastructure, governance deficit and weak civic base, cyberspace pose insurmountable challenges to the safety and sanity of the civilization we have so strenuously and collectively tried to build over time.

In this regard, UN Convention against Cybercrime is a timely intervention and I am confident that it will go a long way in bringing nations together for mutual cooperation, coordination and collaboration with shared principles and frameworks in order to ensure free, open, safe and peaceful cyberspace for all.

Distinguished delegates,

SAARC was founded on the belief that regional cooperation is essential to accelerate economic growth, social progress, and cultural development. In this spirit, the Association has served as a platform for dialogue, trust-building, and coordinated action among its eight member states. While cyber security is yet to be adequately explored, SAARC has long engaged in addressing traditional security threats confronting the region through legal, policy and institutional arrangements.

To name some initiatives, SAARC Regional Convention against Suppression of Terrorism, SAARC Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters, SAARC Convention on Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances are in place. Likewise, SAARC Terrorism Offences Monitoring Desk and SAARC Drugs Offences Monitoring Desk embody our collective resolve to stand together on our shared issues and challenges. They have been established with the objectives inter alia to collect, analyze, disseminate and share information on terrorism and drug related issues.

Earlier, SAARC also regularly held SAARC Conferences on Cooperation in Police Matters which sought to promote regional collaboration to address transnational terrorism and drug trafficking.

Countries in SAARC host a considerable portion of the world’s technology suppliers, and it is estimated that over 40% consumers of communications are in this region. Home to the world’s largest youth population, this region has witnessed clear societal shift towards connectivity and creating opportunities in cyberspace; and this goes hand in hand with the top-down initiatives launched by the governments as well.

Hence, preventing the pitfalls of cyberspace in the region calls for even greater collaboration. In the world fraught with newer and complex challenges every other day, challenges that demand urgent response, that intersect multiple jurisdictions and necessitate multiple stakeholder engagement, the promise of regionalism is louder than ever before. As a region, we could perhaps work together to pool expertise and information, support criminal investigation, launch awareness programs, promote regional initiatives to exchange best practices and lessons learned regarding good cybersecurity governance and promote SAARC wide solutions. A caution is that all these initiatives need to be tempered with safeguarding fundamental freedom and civil liberties which are the cornerstone of democratic societies.

Excellencies,

Distinguished guests,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The United Nations Convention looks promising in its articulation of the possible ways ahead. The Convention seeks to promote cybersecurity governance through various measures such as legislation of criminal justice policy and its harmonization among nation states, establishing common offences and procedural powers, fostering international cooperation, technical assistance and capacity building, improving national legislation and frameworks and enhancing the capacity of national authorities to deal with cybercrime in all its forms, including its prevention, detection, investigation and prosecution. Proactive initiatives and global solidarity on the part of both nation states and international organizations is crucial for the full-fledged implementation of the Convention.

Summing up, I hope that the United Nations Convention on Cybersecurity will be a resounding success story of the United Nations. I also wish to congratulate once again on the successful signing ceremony held today. I am confident that we all will stand together in both letter and spirit for this common cause of humanity.

Thank you once again!