Digital Sovereignty and Authoritarian Diffusion: A Comparative Analysis of Russian and European Internet Imaginaries

• In Event: Digital Sovereignty in the Time of War

Abstract

According to Mansell, Internet imaginaries shape Internet-related policies. Crisis situations, particularly international conflicts, create opportunities to bridge the gap between radical imaginaries of digital technologies and regulatory policies. Moreover, they facilitate the diffusion of authoritarian imaginaries. This paper examines the Russia-Ukraine war as a crisis that fosters new opportunities for the social construction of digital platforms as threats by all sides of the conflict. Simultaneously, it provides a state of exception, enabling the introduction of new policies. A comparison of Russian and European imaginaries of Internet sovereignty reveals a shared logic emphasizing sovereignty under threat, which, in turn, justifies state control over the Internet and emerging technologies such as AI. Through comparative analysis, this article highlights how authoritarian and democratic imaginaries of Internet sovereignty reinforce each other, ultimately contributing to the increasing fragmentation of the World Wide Web.

Author

• Gregory Asmolov, King's College London (UK)