European governments are wondering whether Trump will continue to support Ukraine and NATO in the conflict with Russia, which is being fought in part in cyberspace. Fick's team was instrumental in establishing the rapid delivery of cyber defense assistance to Ukraine's battered government.
"Before Christmas I went to Ukraine, Poland, Estonia, up and down NATO's eastern flank," he said, adding that he felt "both a strong desire for the United States to remain engaged and a recognition that European partners need to do their part." A force – and by the way, they’re doing that more and more.”
More broadly, Fick heard "a strong desire from many allies and partners" for the United States to continue tit-for-tat with China and Russia in technology and cyber discussions at international bodies such as the United Nations and the Group of 20.
"Without deep U.S. involvement, you're going to see China get more deeply involved, you're going to see Russia get more deeply involved," Fick said. "There is a fairly broad view (around the world) that the United States needs to remain engaged in multilateral organizations for its own benefit and the benefit of our allies and partners."
Fick sympathizes with Republicans who see these multilateral organizations as too slow and timid, but he hopes Trump’s team “recognizes that the alternative is not to reduce the influence of these organizations; it is to reduce the influence of these organizations.” Another The only option is to make them a playground for our competitors and adversaries. "
Looking back on his time as U.S. Cyber Ambassador—in total, he spent more than 200 days traveling around the world and nearly 80 visits to key U.S. allies and partners—Fick laid out a plan for how his team would set up within U.S. Cyber Brand new office and proud of it. The U.S. State Department has increased its staff to about 130 people and achieved results that he said are transforming digital diplomacy.
One of his biggest achievements is the launch of a foreign cyber assistance fund that will support programs to deploy security assistance to allies who have been hit by hackers, subsidize new undersea cables and train foreign diplomats on cyber issues.
The security assistance program went through an early test in November, when Costa Rica faced another major ransomware attack. “The next morning, Thanksgiving morning, we had people on the plane, and that night we were at the keyboard with our Costa Rican partners,” Fike said. "It's fantastic. It's a huge change in our approach and it will strengthen our efforts to support these middle-ground countries."
Fick also worked to prepare the Foreign Service for the modern world, achieving the goal of training at least one tech-savvy diplomat for every foreign embassy (about 237 in total) and successfully lobbying to include digital proficiency in career ambassadors at the State Department standard position. He also helped the State Department counterbalance the Pentagon in White House discussions on foreign technology issues—bringing “American diplomacy truly back to the table on technology topics in the Situation Room.”
In addition, his team is supporting U.S. cyber assistance to Ukraine, from security software to satellite communications to cloud migration of critical government data, work that he says provides a template for future public-private foreign aid partnerships.
Fick, who shared his thoughts on China, 5G, artificial intelligence, deterrence and other cyber issues with Trump's transition team, said more work needs to be done to make cyber diplomacy "front and center" at the State Department. Do. But as he prepared to leave government, he made an important suggestion to the incoming government.
"It's critical to have a bias toward action," he said. "We end up spending too long admiring a problem instead of taking decisive steps to solve it... That decisive step may not be perfect, but indecision is a decision and the world moves on without you."
In other words: In an era of rapid technological advancement and heightened geopolitical competition, there are times when vast bureaucracies like the State Department need to take action.
“The job of the leaders of these large organizations,” Fike said, “is to push the organization to change faster than it can on its own.”