US, India to work on cyber rules

The United States once again stressed the importance of its partnership with India in terms of its overall global security vision, and will be working together to create a rules-based order to firm up online security.

According to Leon Panetta in his address at India's Institute for Defense Studies and Analyses on Wednesday, defense cooperation with India is a "linchpin" in its overall security strategy as the Asian giant is one of the largest and most dynamic countries in the region and the world, with one of the most capable militaries.

He added: "We share a commitment to open and free commerce; to open access by all to our shared domains of sea, air, space and cyberspace; and to resolving disputes without coercion or the use of force, in accordance with international law."

Panetta said both countries can do more to drive the creation of a rules-based order to protect their common interests in areas such as cybersecurity and space. "We need to develop 'rules of the road' in these domains to help confront dangerous activities by states and non-state actors alike," he added.

Malaysia's defense minister Zahid Hamidi had earlier called on members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) to pool their resources to tackle these online threats, noting that cyber warfare in the modern era need not be waged by state-run organization but by non-state entities too.