Digital sovereignty is in the fine print

Source: The Jakarta Post
Published on: 2026-06-05 02:09

any policymakers now recognize that digital sovereignty has become a precondition for democratic self-government in the 21st century. The problem is that most countries rely on cloud infrastructure and software platforms owned by a handful of powerful tech firms, largely based in the United States, leaving governments at the mercy of foreign corporate behemoths. A dramatic example of this dependency came after Russia severely damaged Ukraine's telecom infrastructure in 2022, forcing the country to use Starlink, the mobile satellite-internet system operated by Elon Musk's SpaceX, for defense purposes. But later reporting revealed the risks inherent in entrusting sensitive state functions to tech billionaires: Musk rejected a request to extend connectivity over Crimea. It's not just defense. Big Tech's increasingly dominant role in the provision of core government services extends from h...

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