Cyprus-backed DCO study calls for cooperation on AI sovereignty

The Digital Cooperation Organisation (DCO) has launched a new study calling for greater international cooperation to help countries strengthen their digital sovereignty and resilience as artificial intelligence becomes increasingly concentrated among a small number of technology providers. It should be noted that Cyprus is a member of the DCO, which brings together countries seeking to promote digital cooperation and the development of digital economies, among other things. Indeed, Cyprus has sought to deepen its engagement with the DCO as it develops its position as a regional centre for technology, investment and digital services. During a visit to Cyprus in June, DCO Secretary-General Deemah AlYahya held talks with government, business and technology stakeholders on digital investment, artificial intelligence, connectivity and infrastructure. Her meetings included discussions with Invest Cyprus and Cyta, as well as the European Commission, highlighting the range of partnerships being developed around Cyprus’ digital economy. AlYahya said at the time that the island’s growing digital ecosystem and its participation in the DCO provided opportunities to strengthen cooperation on issues ranging from investment and infrastructure to trusted connectivity and cross-border data governance. The aforementioned study, meanwhile, titled “Cooperative Digital Sovereignty and Artificial Intelligence: Promoting Resilience, Strategic Openness, and Self-Determination”, was authored by Luca Belli, a professor at the Fundação Getulio Vargas Law School in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It was officially launched during the 2026 Computers, Privacy and Data Protection Latin America conference, or CPDP LatAm 2026, at a closing plenary focused on building digital sovereignty through cooperation, trade and digital infrastructure. The study argues that countries are unlikely to achieve meaningful digital sovereignty in the era of AI by pursuing isolation or attempting to become completely self-sufficient in technology. Instead, it advocates a cooperative approach that would allow countries to strengthen their technological independence and resilience while protecting their sovereign rights and remaining connected to international digital and AI ecosystems. The report introduces the concept of Cooperative Digital Sovereignty, which it defines as the ability of states and societies to understand, develop, govern and benefit from digital and AI systems while pursuing their own national priorities. The approach also seeks to strengthen technological autonomy through tools and arrangements including open-source technologies, interoperability and trusted international cooperation. The DCO said the concept recognises that countries can strengthen their ability to make independent technological decisions without cutting themselves off from the wider global digital economy. To turn the concept into practical policies, the study proposes a DCO Framework for Cooperative Digital Sovereignty. The framework is built around a number of interconnected factors that can strengthen AI sovereignty, together with different dimensions for putting those principles into practice. Based on the framework, the study sets out recommendations for DCO member states aimed at strengthening their technological capabilities while retaining the advantages of international cooperation and participation in global digital markets. The DCO said the recommendations are intended to provide governments and policymakers with practical ways to develop greater technological autonomy without pursuing complete technological self-sufficiency. “In the age of AI, sovereignty is too often mistaken for isolation,” said Ahmad Bhinder, director of digital policy and intelligence at the DCO and co-author of the study. “This study makes the opposite case: real digital sovereignty is capacity, the ability of a nation to govern, innovate and participate on its own terms, and for most countries, that capacity can only be built together,” Bhinder said. “Cooperation is not the alternative to sovereignty; it is the precondition for it,” Bhinder added. The study comes as AI infrastructure, computing capacity and advanced AI capabilities become increasingly concentrated, raising questions for governments over their ability to control critical technologies and maintain influence over how they are developed and used. The DCO argues that cooperation can provide countries with a way to address those challenges while avoiding the economic and technological costs of attempting to develop every part of the AI ecosystem independently. Through the study, the organisation said it aims to contribute to the global debate over digital sovereignty and AI by providing practical recommendations for governments, policymakers, academics and other participants in the digital economy. The recommendations are intended to help countries strengthen technological autonomy while developing digital economies that are trusted, resilient and capable of adapting to future technological changes. For DCO member states, including Cyprus, the framework provides a basis for considering how national digital priorities can be pursued alongside continued participation in international technology and AI ecosystems.