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Snowden and NSA leaks

Russia to study UN draft resolution against electronic spying

Churkin, Russia's envoy to the UN: Concerns that have prompted to raise the issue of the right to privacy in the digital age, are quite understandable

EPA/JUSTIN LANE

EPA/JUSTIN LANE

UNITED NATIONS, November 8 (Itar-Tass) - Russia plans to take part in the consultations on the draft resolution of the UN General Assembly on online privacy protection and on inadmissibility of electronic espionage that has been presented by Germany and Brazil, Russia’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations Vitaly Churkin told Itar-Tass on Thursday.

“We are currently studying the draft and plan to take part in the consultations that will be held next week,” the Russian diplomat said. According to him, the initiative to adopt such a resolution, put forward by Brazil and Germany, is of interest to Russia. “The concerns that have prompted these countries to raise the issue of the right to privacy in the digital age, are quite understandable,” Russia's ambassador stressed.

Churkin also noted that Russia had not made a decision yet on cosponsoring the resolution. “Regarding the possible cosponsoring of resolutions, we usually make such decisions at later stages, depending on the final contents of the document,” he explained.

Brazil and Germany on Thursday presented to the United Nations a draft resolution of the UN General Assembly urging an end to global electronic espionage. The draft resolution also calls for extending to the Internet the right to privacy that is enshrined in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

“The General Assembly ... affirms that the same rights that people have offline must also be protected online, in particular the right to privacy,” says the draft resolution. Brazil’s Ambassador to the UN Antonio de Aguiar Patriota and German Ambassador to the UN Peter Wittig introduced the resolution at the Third Committee of the UN General Assembly. After the presentation, 10 nations: Austria, Bolivia, Indonesia, North Korea Lichtenstein, Peru, Uruguay, France, Switzerland and Ecuador agreed to cosponsor the document.

After the presentation of the draft resolution the negotiations process began in which other countries may insist on introducing some changes to the document. The document is expected to be put to the vote in the GA Third Committee no later than November 27. If the resolution is passed, its consideration at a plenary session of the UN General Assembly will be a formality.

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