The first National Cybersecurity Summit. The critical event for international collaborative efforts to protect Ukraine’s cyber space in 2022

24.09.2021

On September 23, 2021, the first summit of the National Cybersecurity Cluster was held at the initiative of the National Cybersecurity Coordination Center (NCCC) under the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine and the U.S. Civilian Research and Development Foundation (CRDF Global) with the support of the U.S. Department of State.

The summit brought together more than 100 leaders in the field of cybersecurity from state institutions, the scientific community, the private sector of Ukraine, international and donor institutions to discuss plans to interact with international partners in the field of cybersecurity and protection of the digital space of the country in 2022.

Serhiy Demedyuk, Deputy Secretary of the NSDC of Ukraine, stressed that the NSDC of Ukraine aims to ensure proper security of the public sector, critical infrastructure as well as provide assistance to all citizens and business entities in cooperation with the private sector and security institutions, business entities. Serhiy Demedyuk pointed out that cyberspace cannot be protected without cooperation with the international partners.

The main topic of the first National Cybers​ecurity Summit was “Results of the first half-year period of the National Cybersecurity Cluster activity. Priorities for the future and directions of development growth options”.

The Summit summarized the results of the half-year period of the National Cybersecurity Cluster activity. Since the beginning of 2021, six coordination events of the National Cybersecurity Cluster have been held, in which almost 350 participants from 149 organizations took part. Coordination meetings covered the implementation of the Cybersecurity Strategy  of Ukraine and the development of the National Cyber Crisis Management Plan; critical infrastructure protection; cybersecurity challenges in the energy and defense sector of the state; and the development of the national cybersecurity system in Ukraine.

David Allen Schlefer, Senior Assistance Coordinator, U.S. Embassy in Ukraine, pointed out that the U.S. Government is honored to support the National Cybersecurity Cluster and is committed to the goal of these sessions, which is to deepen cooperation and increase the effectiveness of cybersecurity programs here in Ukraine. The U.S. government considers the Summit will  provide a critical venue for collaboration and cooperation among all stakeholders, local stakeholders, national, international organizations, all cybersecurity stakeholders.. The U.S. Government looks forward to working with Ukrainian and international partners to identify that international assistance can be used in the most effective and the most efficient manner to provide sustainable cybersecurity resilience.

The first National Cybersecurity Summit became a strategic platform, where state institutions, business entities and scientific institutions of Ukraine discussed the needs in the field of cybersecurity for international partners and donor organizations in 2022.

Todd Spiers, CRDF Global Program Operation Director, CRDF Global, stressed that during the coordination sessions, the Cluster organizers received many inquiries from state institutions and business entities about the needs of the cyber community in Ukraine and the need to build dialogue with international partners and donors. Todd Spiers stressed that the purpose of the National Cybersecurity Summit and its panel discussions is to effectively combine the priorities and plans of donors with the needs of state institutions of Ukraine for the efficient use of resources provided by international partners.

During the Summit, memorandums on cooperation and mutual understanding were signed between the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine and the Ministry of Infrastructure of Ukraine, as well as between CRDF Global and IFES Ukraine.

In 2021-2022, it is planned to continue regular coordination activities of the National Cybersecurity in Ukraine, strengthening the capacities of cybersecurity actors, improving coordination and joint efforts of state institutions, the professional community and international partners to ensure sustainable cyberspace of Ukraine.

For notes 

Since the beginning of 2021, 6 coordination meetings of the National Cybersecurity Cluster have been held, which were attended by more than 350 participants from more than 140 organizations.

Topics of previous meetings were: protection of critical infrastructure, cybersecurity challenges in the energy sector and defense of the state, cyberbiosecurity as a hybrid discipline at the intersection of cybersecurity and biosecurity. The meetings covered strategically important issues, such as the development of the National Cyber Crisis Management Plan, improving the training of specialists in the field of cybersecurity, the development of public-private partnerships, support for scientific and applied research, etc.

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