Australia, Canada, Japan, UK and US to form the Global Coalition on Telecommunications

The coalition aims to increase cooperation and coordination between the GCOT partners on telecommunications, including by improving information sharing to ensure complementary national approaches, enabling dialogue between policymakers, industry, and academia, and promoting innovation and growth opportunities for industry.
Telecommunication tower on blue sky background

The United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and Japan have formed the Global Coalition on Telecommunications (GCOT). GCOT will concentrate on broadening the telecommunications supply chain and advocating for open network architectures. Its objective is to attain international agreement on pivotal telecom policies, fostering innovation and the growth of the industry.

Emphasising the critical nature of secure and innovative telecommunications, the coalition has identified key areas of concentration, including the diversification of supply chains, the promotion of open network architectures, and the advancement of emerging technologies such as 6G. In a bid to achieve these ambitious objectives, GCOT has outlined a multifaceted approach that involves extensive collaboration in information sharing, aligned research endeavours, funding coordination, and joint projects.

Topics GCOT is expected to focus on include:

  • Telecommunications Supply Chain Diversification
  • 6G and Future Telecommunications
  • Telecommunications Security and Resilience
  • Telecommunications Skills
  • Coordinated approaches to Telecommunications Standards Development

The core principles driving GCOT’s initiatives are rooted in the advocacy of open standards, the pursuit of interoperability, and a steadfast commitment to global outreach. As articulated by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), GCOT represents the most comprehensive and far-reaching international endeavour to address critical telecom priorities, with a primary focus on bolstering the security, diversity, resilience, and innovation of telecommunications networks on a global scale.