How the internet is being used as a battle tactic amidst the Ukraine Russia war
As Russia continues to wage war on Ukraine, governments around the globe are conjuring up tactics to cut Russia's resources off. Some that the U.S. has already cut off include "restrictions on the Russian Central Bank, freezing certain Russian-owned assets, being removed from the global SWIFT payment system, and prohibiting interactions with the Russian oil and gas industries" (Bouza & Shachtman). In doing so, the U.S. hopes to continuously deplete President Putin of economic resources that may aid him in the war he is waging against Ukraine. More recently, the U.S. government is now considering the role that technology plays in the current turmoil. So far, some major tech companies have placed restrictions of Russia's access to their social media platforms, but Ukraine is thinking bigger. In a direct address to ICANN, the Ukrainian government stated:
"I'm sending you this letter on behalf of the people of Ukraine, asking you to address an urgent need to introduce strict sanctions against the Russian Federation in the field of DNS [Domain Name System] regulation, in response to its acts of aggression towards Ukraine and its citizens," Ukraine's ICANN associate wrote on February 28th.
If Russia were to be disconnected from the global computer network it would send a strong message. Not only that, but it would also create serious difficulties in communication for the country itself. Essentially, if this were to happen, Russia would be unable to connect with any domain outside of its own. Although, in theory, the plan to disconnect Russia from the global internet seems like a powerful attack; just recently the country ran a national test to better prepare themselves in the case of internet disconnection. In addition to Russia's preparedness for this digital warfare, another element to consider in completing this request is potentially aiding in their ongoing propaganda. If the U.S. were to sever the country from the global internet, it would prohibit all citizens' access to outside news and media. In other words, "cutting Russia off from the rest of the digital world might be giving the Kremlin exactly what it wants: a citizenry unable to access outside information" (Fung). This is a risky concept when it comes to authoritarian countries such as Russia.
A move this drastic may set a scary precedent for the future. ICANN has never interfered in a war in this manner, and governments are hesitant to adhere to Ukraine's novel request. Their plea directly violates multiple digital security laws that officials fear will be overlooked in other circumstances. These key issues, coupled with the fact that the the disconnection will also affect Russian civilian's capability to speak out against their nations choice of war, are both valid reasons to consider an alternative route of isolation. In a situation as delicate as this, it is vital that government officials weigh every outcome and consequence of their decisions.
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This war is terrifying - it reminds me a lot of the Cold War. Obviously people are dying in the Ukraine which is terrible, but in terms of global impacts nobody has any idea what will happen next. Are Putin's threats just a bunch of threats or do they have some basis? Whats scary is we don't know... and that could lead to nuclear destruction.
This is honestly very scary to think about. In Russia already there is so much propaganda around the war and just politics in general that cutting off any outside influence could be catastrophic for innocent civilians. They would go to a very utopian lifestyle and know absolutely nothing else besides their way of life. The government could tell them whatever they want and the people would have to listen.
There may be some strategic benefit from cutting off the Russian government and military from outside internet, but isolating the hundreds of millions of Russian civilians is not going to be worth it. If Russia is already prepared for such an act, then there is really no point to cutting off the entire population for no good reason. I think the request from the Ukraine for this is an act of desperation, and that it is not ethical at all to cut Russians off and make them rely on state propaganda alone for their news. I hope the internet will always be accessible, especially with the Starlink constellation going up.
I'm of the opinion that completely cutting off Russia from the global internet would be ultimately a bad thing. Many Russians are not in agreement with the Kremlin, and while their opinions are actively being suppressed already, this would make it much easier to silence them. There is a sort of "halfway" solution that many countries in Eastern Europe are taking. My friend who currently lives in Lithuania says that on the eve of the full-scale invasion, the government blocked all Russian channels from being broadcast in the country so they can no longer watch the Russian news, entertainment, etc but they did not block outbound broadcasting, so Russians can still watch stations from outside of Russia. I feel like…