What role did the United States play in drafting the Council of Europe Convention?
The United States was invited to participate as an “observer” in both the 1989 and 1995 Recommendations, as well as in the development of the Convention on Cybercrime. Because of the vulnerability of the United States to Cybercrime, the benefits to be gained from a well-crafted instrument focused on increasing international cooperation in this area, the U.S. desire to help shape such an important instrument, and the importance of the information technology sector, the United States accepted the CoE’s invitation to participate in the Convention negotiations. Among other non-CoE States participating in the negotiations were Canada, Japan, and South Africa. By virtue of their having participated in the Convention’s elaboration, the United States and other non-CoE States have the right to become Parties to the Convention, and all have in fact signed it. The United States, represented by the Departments of Justice, State and Commerce, in close consultation with other U.S. government agencie
