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Back to Issue: No.5, 2025

Digital sovereignty policy in Saudi Arabia and Iran: Challenges for international law and global internet governance

Vladyslav Kononenko

Abstract

The relevance of this research is determined by the growing global trend towards strengthening state control over the digital sphere, which finds clear expression in the digital policies of authoritarian regimes. The aim of the study was to analyze the features of the implementation of digital sovereignty policies in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Islamic Republic of Iran, as well as to assess their impact on international legal norms and the global Internet governance system. The research methodology was based on normative legal analysis, case studies of national digital autonomy strategies, and examination of institutional behaviour within global internet governance forums. The study established that Iran and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) have implemented different in form but similar in authoritarian essence models of digital sovereignty, which entail centralised control over internet infrastructure, data localisation, and restrictions on access to global content. It was found that Iran has developed an isolationist model of digital autonomy, based on the creation of a National Information Network, traffic segmentation, and the blocking of international resources, whereas KSA integrated mechanisms of digital control into its broader state techno-economic development strategy within Vision 2030, combining them with engagement of Western technology partners. Systematic restrictions on digital human rights were documented in both countries, in particular freedom of expression, access to information, and privacy, which contravene the international legal obligations of states. It was further established that Iran and KSA pursue deliberate policies aimed at influencing global internet governance processes – in particular, through participation in intergovernmental formats, promoting concepts of digital sovereignty, and contesting universal principles of an open Internet. The study also revealed the structural weakness and fragmentation of international regulatory responses: absence of coherent mechanisms for holding states accountable, limited mandates of global institutions, and low effectiveness of multilateral forums in constraining authoritarian fragmentation of the digital sphere. The practical significance of the research lies in formulating recommendations for international institutions on safeguarding the unity of the digital domain and curbing authoritarian internet fragmentation

Keywords

authoritarianism; data localisation; isolation; technologies; privacy; fragmentation

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Suggested citation

Kononenko, V. (2025). Digital sovereignty policy in Saudi Arabia and Iran: Challenges for international law and global internet governance. Foreign Affairs, 35(5), 109-122. https://doi.org/10.59214/ua.fa/5.2025.109
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