I 
117TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1251 
To support United States international cyber diplomacy, and for other 
purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 23, 2021 
Mr. MCCAUL (for himself, Mr. MEEKS, Mr. KINZINGER, Mr. LANGEVIN, Mr. 
GALLAGHER, and Mr. KEATING) introduced the following bill; which was 
referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs 
A BILL 
To support United States international cyber diplomacy, and 
for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 
‘‘Cyber Diplomacy Act of 2021’’. 
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 
this Act is as follows: 
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 
Sec. 2. Findings. 
Sec. 3. Definitions. 
Sec. 4. United States International Cyberspace Policy. 
Sec. 5. Department of State responsibilities. 
Sec. 6. International cyberspace executive arrangements. 
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Sec. 7. International strategy for cyberspace. 
Sec. 8. Annual country reports on human rights practices. 
Sec. 9. GAO report on cyber diplomacy. 
Sec. 10. Sense of Congress on cybersecurity sanctions against North Korea and 
cybersecurity legislation in Vietnam. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress makes the following findings: 
(1) The stated goal of the United States Inter-
national Strategy for Cyberspace, launched on May 
16, 2011, is to ‘‘work internationally to promote an 
open, interoperable, secure, and reliable information 
and communications infrastructure that supports 
international trade and commerce, strengthens inter-
national security, and fosters free expression and in-
novation . . . in which norms of responsible behav-
ior guide states’ actions, sustain partnerships, and 
support the rule of law in cyberspace’’. 
(2) In its June 24, 2013 report, the Group of 
Governmental Experts on Developments in the Field 
of Information and Telecommunications in the Con-
text of International Security (referred to in this 
section as ‘‘GGE’’), established by the United Na-
tions General Assembly, concluded that ‘‘State sov-
ereignty and the international norms and principles 
that flow from it apply to States’ conduct of [infor-
mation and communications technology] ICT-related 
activities and to their jurisdiction over ICT infra-
structure with their territory’’. 
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(3) In January 2015, China, Kazakhstan, 
Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan pro-
posed a troubling international code of conduct for 
information security, which could be used as a pre-
text for restricting political dissent, and includes 
‘‘curbing the dissemination of information that in-
cites terrorism, separatism or extremism or that in-
flames hatred on ethnic, racial or religious grounds’’. 
(4) In its July 22, 2015 consensus report, GGE 
found that ‘‘norms of responsible State behavior can 
reduce risks to international peace, security and sta-
bility’’. 
(5) On September 25, 2015, the United States 
and China announced a commitment that neither 
country’s government ‘‘will conduct or knowingly 
support cyber-enabled theft of intellectual property, 
including trade secrets or other confidential business 
information, with the intent of providing competitive 
advantages to companies or commercial sectors’’. 
(6) At the Antalya Summit on November 15 
and 
16, 
2015, 
the 
Group 
of 
Leaders’ 
communique´— 
(A) affirmed the applicability of inter-
national law to state behavior in cyberspace; 
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(B) called on states to refrain from cyber- 
enabled theft of intellectual property for com-
mercial gain; and 
(C) endorsed the view that all states 
should abide by norms of responsible behavior. 
(7) The March 2016 Department of State 
International Cyberspace Policy Strategy noted that 
‘‘the Department of State anticipates a continued in-
crease and expansion of our cyber-focused diplomatic 
efforts for the foreseeable future’’. 
(8) On December 1, 2016, the Commission on 
Enhancing National Cybersecurity, which was estab-
lished within the Department of Commerce by Exec-
utive Order 13718 (81 Fed. Reg. 7441), rec-
ommended that ‘‘the President should appoint an 
Ambassador for Cybersecurity to lead U.S. engage-
ment with the international community on cyberse-
curity strategies, standards, and practices’’. 
(9) On April 11, 2017, the 2017 Group of 7 
Declaration on Responsible States Behavior in 
Cyberspace— 
(A) recognized ‘‘the urgent necessity of in-
creased international cooperation to promote se-
curity and stability in cyberspace’’; 
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(B) expressed commitment to ‘‘promoting 
a strategic framework for conflict prevention, 
cooperation and stability in cyberspace, con-
sisting of the recognition of the applicability of 
existing international law to State behavior in 
cyberspace, the promotion of voluntary, non- 
binding norms of responsible State behavior 
during peacetime, and the development and the 
implementation of practical cyber confidence 
building measures (CBMs) between States’’; 
and 
(C) reaffirmed that ‘‘the same rights that 
people have offline must also be protected on-
line’’. 
(10) In testimony before the Select Committee 
on Intelligence of the Senate on May 11, 2017, Di-
rector of National Intelligence Daniel R. Coats iden-
tified 6 cyber threat actors, including— 
(A) Russia, for ‘‘efforts to influence the 
2016 US election’’; 
(B) China, for ‘‘actively targeting the US 
Government, its allies, and US companies for 
cyber espionage’’; 
(C) Iran, for ‘‘leverag[ing] cyber espionage, 
propaganda, and attacks to support its security 
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priorities, influence events and foreign percep-
tions, and counter threats’’; 
(D) 
North 
Korea, 
for 
‘‘previously 
conduct[ing] cyber-attacks against US commer-
cial entities—specifically, Sony Pictures Enter-
tainment in 2014’’; 
(E) terrorists, who ‘‘use the Internet to or-
ganize, recruit, spread propaganda, raise funds, 
collect intelligence, inspire action by followers, 
and coordinate operations’’; and 
(F) criminals, who ‘‘are also developing 
and using sophisticated cyber tools for a variety 
of purposes including theft, extortion, and fa-
cilitation of other criminal activities’’. 
(11) On May 11, 2017, President Donald J. 
Trump issued Executive Order 13800 (82 Fed. Reg. 
22391), entitled ‘‘Strengthening the Cybersecurity of 
Federal Networks and Infrastructure’’, which— 
(A) designates the Secretary of State to 
lead an interagency effort to develop an engage-
ment strategy for international cooperation in 
cybersecurity; and 
(B) notes that ‘‘the United States is espe-
cially dependent on a globally secure and resil-
ient internet and must work with allies and 
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other partners toward maintaining . . . the pol-
icy of the executive branch to promote an open, 
interoperable, reliable, and secure internet that 
fosters efficiency, innovation, communication, 
and economic prosperity, while respecting pri-
vacy and guarding against disruption, fraud, 
and theft’’. 
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
(1) APPROPRIATE
CONGRESSIONAL
COMMIT-
TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com-
mittees’’ means the Committee on Foreign Relations 
of the Senate and the Committee on Foreign Affairs 
of the House of Representatives. 
(2) 
INFORMATION
AND
COMMUNICATIONS 
TECHNOLOGY; ICT.—The terms ‘‘information and 
communications technology’’ and ‘‘ICT’’ include 
hardware, software, and other products or services 
primarily intended to fulfill or enable the function of 
information processing and communication by elec-
tronic means, including transmission and display, in-
cluding via the Internet. 
(3) EXECUTIVE AGENCY.—The term ‘‘Executive 
agency’’ has the meaning given the term in section 
105 of title 5, United States Code. 
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