Secretary of the Russian Security Council Nikolai Patrushev declared that the Internet is under the de facto control of American corporations, which are using it to advance their neo-colonial ambitions of global domination. He spoke about this on Monday at a meeting with representatives of the BRICS and seven other countries – “friends of the five” in Johannesburg.

According to Patrushev, the United States, with the help of its Western allies, is actively interfering in the internal affairs of those countries that do not obey their will.

“At the so-called “Democracy Summit” in March, Americans made loud statements about the importance of counteracting autocracies, protecting human rights, and preventing censorship on the global network. But at the same time, they use all the resources available to them to stimulate protests in “undemocratic”, by their standards, countries of the world,” Patrushev said.

He also added that Western countries refuse to accept legal obligations in the information field, hiding behind false claims that existing international law is sufficient to regulate relations in the digital environment.

“We consider it important to jointly move towards the internationalization of the management of the global network, increasing the representation and role of developing states in these processes,” Nikolay Patrushev addressed his BRICS colleagues and fellow countries.

In particular, he expressed the opinion that our common interest is to preserve the Open-Ended Working Group as the only universal negotiating mechanism on international information security issues.

The Secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation urged “to jointly strive for the formation of a universal international legal regime in the digital environment, based on the principles of the sovereign equality of states and non-interference in internal affairs.”