Key Issues and Future Development of International Cyberspace Law

Abstract

Development of international cyberspace law has attracted world-wide attention in recent years and was placed on the agenda of the Tehran Session of the Asian-African Legal Consultative Organization (AALCO) in 2014 under strong advocacy from China. In its Beijing Session on April 13 to 17, 2015, the AALCO held a special meeting on international cyberspace law and adopted a resolution for the establishment of an open-ended working group to further discuss relevant issues through meetings or workshops to be co-sponsored with the governments of member states and some international organizations. This article is based on the author’s presentation at that special meeting, as well as his views and ideas expressed on other occasions. It first elaborates on some key issues of international cyberspace law such as global cyber governance, state sovereignty, internet freedom, application of armed conflict laws and international cooperation on combating cybercrime, and then proposes a legal framework and potential roadmap for future international cyberspace legislation.