Eric Geller

Eric Geller @ericgeller

Young asks Fick what tools the U.S. has to improve adherence to cyber norms. Fick says "we have not fully extended deterrence into the cyber domain" and adversaries antagonize us there because they can get away with it." — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

Fick: “My hope ... is to provide coherence to our tech diplomacy and ensure that we ... are coordinating our efforts, because we have a competitor out there [🇨🇳] with a very different vision of what our global technology future to look like." — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

Young notes that Fick recently co-authored a report calling for tighter integration between national security and digital competition policy. He asks what the U.S. can do about that and how Fick will play a role. — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

.@SenToddYoung mentions this bill of his https://t.co/HiUmBnU6Zv and asks if State is best positioned to spearhead global tech partnerships. Fick says yes, but it's a cross-cutting issue, so other agencies will be heavily involved. — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

"...and I hope that, if confirmed as the inaugural ambassador leading this office, we can create clear lines of responsibility that outlive any individual." — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

Fick: “I have known Director Inglis, Anne Neuberger and Jen Easterly in different capacities for more than a decade. I have full confidence that we can carve out the right swim lanes..." — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

"I believe that diplomacy should be our tool of first resort, I believe in the intrinsic value of diplomacy, and so I think this role actually does fill an important gap in the cyber and tech responsibilities across the government," Fick says. — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

But, Fick adds, "I've had a strong conviction that this role actually fills a gap that has existed in our government." — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

Fick says he appreciates "a clear chain of command," "clear and well defined swimlanes," and accountability, and he recognizes that "it is always easy to add, but it's hard to subtract. … I come to this role with a heightened sense of concern about the issue that you raise." — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

.@senrobportman says he's concerned that there are too many lead cyber officials and asks Fick how he'll navigate that. — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

.@timkaine tells Fick that he and his book, "One Bullet Away," were influential in Kaine's son's decision to join the military, where he served as an infantry officer for eight years. Fick served in the Marine battalion depicted in the book and HBO miniseries "Generation Kill." — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

Two examples that Fick gives for using this fund: * Partnering with European Commission’s Trade and Technology Council to finance 5G infrastructure deployments in third countries * Expanding work with Quad countries to promote Open RAN deployments in Indo-Pacific — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

Fick: “I strongly share the sentiment expressed in your question and believe very strongly that global telecom security is essential. … If confirmed, I would work to deploy the resources appropriated in the CHIPS Act.” — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

Rounds asks Fick how he'll use State's Multilateral Telecommunication Security Fund (which finally received funding in CHIPS bill) to promote Western alternatives to Huawei. — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

Fick described his priorities from internal to external, so the third one he mentioned was the policy challenges in the world, especially Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the “strategic competition with China," which he called the "defining strategic question of my generation." — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

Fick's second priority is to “assert the State Department's rightful place in the interagency process on topics of cybersecurity and digital policy." Related: https://t.co/Zk5fuzcxGy — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

"I can imagine a future where any candidate to be a chief of mission is expected to have an understanding of these issues," Fick says, "because they're a substrate that cut across every aspect of our foreign policy." — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

Menendez asks Fick what his top priorities will be. Fick first cites building a team for his bureau and establishing a Foreign Service culture where "a fluency and expertise in digital technologies is seen as important" to FS officers' "careers and futures." — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

SFRC Chair Bob Menendez, beginning his round of questioning, notes that the committee's new State Department authorization bill contains a version of the Cyber Diplomacy Act, so it may get traction soon. — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

With all the commercial spyware abuses in the news, note Fick's commitment to the internet freedom plank of his bureau's mission. "We must harness [digital] technologies to strengthen democratic governance, instead of allowing them to be used for repression." — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

Fick notes that “norms are more effective in binding together our allies than they are in dissuading our adversaries," so the U.S. and its partners must "impose meaningful consequences" on countries that violate norms, including those that "willfully harbor" cyber criminals. — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

Fick says his three priorities are: * Strengthening adherence to UN-endorsed global cyber norms * Promoting a "global digital economy" with transparent technological standards * Championing digital freedom and combat online authoritarianism — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

“Our future will be shaped by the infrastructure, standards, norms and policies that determine how digital technologies are developed, deployed and used," Fick says. He says we're "in a global contest" against China over whether the internet will empower or repress people. — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

Fick is giving his opening statement (the other nominees all went before him): “American technology leadership is critical to the credible promotion of our values, to sustaining our economic strength and to our national security. It is the next frontier of American diplomacy.” — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

.@SenatorRounds, the ranking member on SASC's cyber subcommittee and the presiding Republican at this SFRC hearing: “We need to take a hard look at our foreign policy as it relates to cyberspace and how we can be proactively engaged to defend U.S. interests." — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

King is now introducing Fick. "I cannot imagine a better candidate to fulfill this position." My story on Fick's selection: https://t.co/MFfjzdVphk — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

King says the Cyber Diplomacy Act was going to be considered today but was postponed because of "the NATO activity this afternoon." "I hope that you will give prompt consideration to that bill … and I look forward to working with you on its hopefully prompt enactment." — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

King: “I commend the administration for taking the initiative to create this office within the State Department, but I believe we also need legislation to codify the existence of the office so it's not something that may come and go with the whim of a particular administration.” — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

"We want someone who gets up every morning thinking about the international ramifications of cyber," King says. — PolitiTweet.org

Eric Geller @ericgeller

.@SenAngusKing, who co-led @CyberSolarium, which recommended a cyber bureau at State, is introducing Fick. He also urges the Senate to pass the Cyber Diplomacy Act, which would codify that bureau and Fick's role. — PolitiTweet.org