The following is the text of a joint statement by the Governments of the United States of America and the Republic of Korea.
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The United States and the Republic of Korea reaffirmed their shared commitment to open, interoperable, reliable, and secure digital connectivity and information and communications technologies to support the growth of a competitive and competitive digital economy. innovation during the United States-Republic of Korea ICT Policy Forum, hosted in a hybrid format by the United States on September 12 and 13, 2023.
The dialogue included discussions with private sector representatives from both countries on promoting open, interoperable and secure fifth generation (5G) wireless technologies, networks and services; public-private partnerships to support the development of the digital economy in third countries; and international coordination in areas such as artificial intelligence (AI), cloud policy and secure and reliable data flows.
Both countries recognized the importance of promoting the development and deployment of open, secure and resilient 5G networks in advanced and emerging economies to ensure that countries, businesses and citizens can be confident that companies providing equipment , ICT software and services also focus on strengthening the security of the ICT ecosystem and protecting privacy, intellectual property rights and respect for human rights. Both countries also reaffirmed their commitment to an inclusive, open and transparent Internet governance system, based on multi-stakeholder models. Additionally, both countries are committed to collaborating in the following areas:
- In coordination with telecommunications operators and providers of the United States and the Republic of Korea and consistent with the Prague Proposals on Telecommunications Provider Diversity, the United States and the Republic of Korea plan to cooperate to promote reliable options for the diversity of telecommunications providers in third countries in the Indo-Pacific region, including open 4G/5G wireless RAN networks. This may include the joint provision of technical assistance and project preparation activities such as feasibility studies, trial demonstrations, testing and integration infrastructure support and financial support for commercial deployments.
- Expanding on existing lines of work such as ongoing Open RAN technical discussions, the United States and the Republic of Korea intend to explore opportunities for cooperative research and development on 5G and 6G , including open and interoperable approaches to architecture such as Open RAN.
- The United States and the Republic of Korea recognize the need for an inclusive approach to developing AI governance that supports the development of trustworthy AI aligned with democratic values and human rights, while preserving a competitive and innovation-friendly AI ecosystem, and hope to cooperate to promote this vision by exploring standardization collaboration and exchanging best practices within multilateral bodies.
- Both countries take note of the opportunities presented by AI and other emerging digital technologies and recognize the need for a discussion on principles to address topics such as the promotion of digital culture and digital ecosystems to adapt to technological advances and seek to mitigate risks posed by use. digital technologies while promoting digital innovation. The two countries plan to cooperate closely to explore ways to build global solidarity, including by jointly organizing forums or workshops, to discuss and implement international principles on emerging digital technologies.
- The United States and the Republic of Korea plan to share best practices for maintaining resilient and robust cloud infrastructure and strengthen cooperation in research and development, people-to-people exchanges, and mutual investments to promote the growth of the cloud industry in both countries.
- The United States and the Republic of Korea recognize that unlicensed devices that use Wi-Fi and other unlicensed standards help provide low-cost wireless connectivity and support innovation and economic growth. Both countries support keeping the entire 6 GHz band open for unlicensed uses. As such, the United States and the Republic of Korea plan to cooperate to promote keeping the 6 GHz band open for unlicensed use among third countries in the Indo-Pacific region.
- The United States congratulates the Republic of Korea for joining the Freedom Online Coalition and hosting the Third Democracy Summit. Both countries agree to explore opportunities to expand cooperation on digital freedom issues.
- The United States and the Republic of Korea plan to cooperate to promote cross-border privacy rules in third countries and support the development of the Global CBPR Forum.
U.S. Department of State Ambassador-at-Large for Cyberspace and Digital Policy Nathaniel Fick led the U.S. delegation, which included officials representing the U.S. Department of State, the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration, the International Trade Administration, the American Agency for Internationalization. Development, the United States Trade Representative and the Federal Communications Commission. Vice Minister of Science and ICT (MSIT) Park Yun-kyu led the ROK delegation, which included officials representing MSIT, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Personal Information Protection Commission.
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