The crisis that technological innovation will bring to the world

On November 11, 1918, the largest war in human history, which lasted for four years, ended. This war made a lot of use of science and technology developed by the Second Industrial Revolution, and the war itself became one of the great moments to develop science and technology. The New York Carnegie Foundation says that it is easy to grasp all of these wars as being in the past compared to the present time, but in terms of innovation, it is actually similar to the situation we have in modern times.

Just as the leaders of each country in the 19th century laid railroads everywhere to build social and technological networks, now satellites, communication networks, and transportation networks are spread all over the world. Today, some scholars are alarming that excessive dependence on satellites and communications technology is nothing less than continuing to present attractive temptations to military planners, such as surprise or preemptive attacks.

The difference between the dangers that exist in the present age from 100 years ago is that it cannot be said that the trigger for the war to occur is not necessarily visible. Satellites staying at a much higher level can be physically deactivated, such as missiles, but it could be enough to remotely manipulate them by hacking. It can also cause a crisis between countries by transmitting information disguised as a certain country by using satellites or communications stolen by malicious users.

It is difficult for each country to establish a cooperative relationship with respect to information because each country has an absolute focus on protecting their own cybersecurity. However, there are many means for each country to guess each other’s situation. For example, armament management, which restricts armament reinforcement between countries, functions efficiently, and countries actively disclose military assets. In addition, the Treaty on Open Skies (Treaty on Open Skies) has been signed so that regular surveillance flights can be conducted above the other country. As President Ronald Reagan said in the past, trust, but verify, is the time when Mali is taken for granted.

On the other hand, there is neither trust nor credibility in cyber warfare. The United States is attempting to thoroughly remove Chinese products from the domestic market in response to the telecommunication crisis. However, at least 16 countries, including Indonesia and Israel, have agreed on China’s digital siloroad strategy, despite the US warning each country to cancel the introduction of Chinese telecommunications infrastructure. However, the New York Carnegie Foundation points out that a company that meets the growing demand for infrastructure in each country has nothing to replace the Chinese company Huawei, which is supported by the state.

Great changes in the late 19th and early 20th centuries disrupted social norms and demanded new political responses from state rulers. In addition to constant technological innovation, social and political instability is caused, and old political systems and international treaties are collapsing. The New York Carnegie Foundation stresses that the massive changes going on are beyond our imagination and that we need to pay attention to the political side that responds to them. Related information can be found here.