The overarching question imparting urgency to this exploration is: Can U.S.-Russian contention in cyberspace cause the two nuclear superpowers to stumble into war? In considering this question we were constantly reminded of recent comments by a prominent U.S. arms control expert: At least as dangerous as the risk of an actual cyberattack, he observed, is cyber operations’ “blurring of the line between peace and war.” Or, as Nye wrote, “in the cyber realm, the difference between a weapon and a non-weapon may come down to a single line of code, or simply the intent of a computer program’s user.”
Ambassador Michael Froman is a Klein Fellow of Economic Diplomacy with the Future of Diplomacy Project and the Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government.
Froman is also a distinguished fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations and James R. Schlesinger distinguished professor at the University of Virginia's Miller Center of Public Affairs. He served in President Barack Obama’s cabinet as the U.S. trade representative from June 2013 to January 2017. He worked to open foreign markets for U.S. goods and services, enforce America’s rights in the global trading system, and foster development through trade. Major initiatives under his leadership included the conclusion of the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement in the Asia Pacific and negotiations toward a Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership with the European Union; among others.
Ambassador Nicholas Burns, Roy and Barbara Goodman Family Professor of the Practice of Diplomacy and International Relations, HKS Faculty Director, Future of Diplomacy Project; Faculty Chair, Middle East Initiative, Harvard Kennedy School.
Lawrence H. Summers is the Charles W. Eliot University Professor and President Emeritus at Harvard University. He served as the 71st Secretary of the Treasury for President Clinton and the Director of the National Economic Council for President Obama.