REANNZ signs cyber resilience pact with Asia-Pacific

REANNZ has signed the Auckland Declaration of Intent on Cyber Resilience with Asia-Pacific research network partners, setting out a regional framework for cyber incident preparation and response.

The declaration was signed by REANNZ, TEIN*CC/Asia@Connect, APAN and the APAN/Asia@Connect Leaders Forum. It sets out a shared intention to cooperate on preparedness, information sharing, incident coordination, capacity building and mutual support, where national laws and institutional policies permit.

The agreement reflects growing concern among research and education networks about the risk of cyber incidents disrupting cross-border academic work and the digital systems that support it. Researchers in New Zealand and across the Asia-Pacific rely on international links to access data, specialist facilities, computing platforms and expertise, making network stability a central issue for universities and scientific institutions.

A serious interruption to those connections could affect work in areas including climate and natural hazard modelling, biosecurity, precision agriculture, genomics and health research. For smaller countries such as New Zealand, where research projects often depend on access to larger international programmes and repositories, disruption can have effects beyond the institution directly affected.

Regional coordination

The declaration is intended to create clearer lines of communication between network operators before a crisis occurs. The work will focus on practical coordination, including sharing lessons from incidents, establishing reliable contact points, improving preparedness and identifying how regional partners can support each other during disruption.

Amber McEwen, Chief Executive Officer of REANNZ, said the agreement had added significance because it was reached while leaders from Asia-Pacific research and education networks were gathered in New Zealand.

"New Zealand has already seen how disruptive cyber-attacks can be when they affect services people rely on," McEwen said.

"The lesson is that you do not wait until something has happened to work out who you need beside you."

"For us, this is about putting the right connections in place now, so we can pick up the phone, share what we know, and move quickly together when it counts," McEwen said.

Research and education networks occupy a distinct position in digital infrastructure. They support collaboration across universities, institutes and public research bodies, often linking users in multiple jurisdictions with different legal and policy frameworks. That makes cyber response planning more complicated than it is within a single institution or country.

Roshan G Ragel, Convenor of the APAN/Asia@Connect Leaders Forum, said the agreement recognised that resilience depended not only on technical measures but also on established relationships between organisations.

"Research and education networks do not operate in isolation. When one part of our community is affected, others may need to help quickly, share information, or coordinate a response," Ragel said.

"This declaration is about having those channels ready before they are needed."

Global link

The regional initiative also connects with the Global Security Policy Alliance, which seeks to improve security cooperation across research and education networks internationally. Under the declaration, signatories will consider a regional chapter or similar structure that fits local priorities while preserving the autonomy of participating organisations.

That approach is intended to accommodate the varied legal, institutional and national settings across the Asia-Pacific. The declaration is not legally binding, but it gives participants a common basis for joint work carried out in good faith.

Ragel said the need for coordination reflected the way researchers already work across borders, institutions and time zones.

"Our users collaborate across countries, time zones and institutions. The networks that support them need to be ready to do the same when disruption occurs," Ragel said.

"The declaration gives us a practical basis for strengthening regional response, while recognising that each organisation operates within its own national, legal and institutional context."

McEwen said that balance was particularly relevant for New Zealand because of the structure of its research system.

"We are making sure the right people know each other, understand what they can share, and have a clear basis for coordinated action when there is pressure on," McEwen said.