With US Commitment to Internet Freedom in Jeopardy, China and Russia Set to Gain

For years, a global community of pro-democracy internet freedom and digital rights groups has relied substantially on funding from the United States, including grants from the State Department and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). Now, likely to the delight of authoritarian governments, this funding is in jeopardy.

At President Donald Trump’s direction, Elon Musk’s legally dubious demolition of USAID and Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s restructuring and realignment of priorities in his department, including firing contractors working on democracy and human rights programs, has put US leadership on internet freedom and the free flow of information in doubt.

According to interviews with experts with knowledge of US internet freedom and global digital rights programs, if funds are not restored, the US risks ceding ground to adversaries, including China and Russia, at a crucial time for the future of internet governance and efforts to counter authoritarian advances in multiple countries and regions. Civil society organizations and their employees, many operating in difficult circumstances abroad, are in limbo.

In a statement to Tech Policy Press, a State Department spokesperson said the Department is "reviewing all foreign assistance programs to ensure they are efficient and consistent with US foreign policy under the America First agenda."

“It’s stunning,” said Steven​​​​ Feldstein, who served as Director of the Office of Policy in USAID from 2011-2014. Now a senior fellow in the Democracy, Conflict, and Governance Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Feldstein told Tech Policy Press that US funding for internet freedom initiatives and support for civil society organizations “is incredibly important for pushing back against authoritarianism and for countering China and Russia. To leave these groups out to dry is not only damaging to them, it’s extremely detrimental to US interests.”

A Singular Source for Funding

In addition to its signature programs providing food and medicine to the poorest countries in the world, over the years, USAID has been tasked with delivering a number of programs designed to advance internet freedom and support for independent media consistent with its Congressional mandate. Those programs operate in tandem with initiatives in the Department of State’s Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor (DRL). According to the Congressional Research Service, the State Department and USAID allocations for foreign aid to support “Independent Media and Free Flow of Information,” including internet freedom programs, topped $250 million in recent years.

The State Department has extensively supported internet freedom programs around the world. A 2022 review of the portfolio commissioned by the State Department noted that by that year, the department had funded “150 programs, of which over 50 remain active, in every region of the world.” One subject matter expert interviewed for the review noted that “DRL is basically the only donor in the world to invest” in programs to support civil society organizations that counter repressive Internet-related laws and regulations, just one of the key problem areas in the portfolio.

Globally, USAID supported a wide range of programs to empower civil society organizations, journalists, and human rights defenders to prevent, mitigate, and respond to digital repression and internet shutdowns, particularly in countries most vulnerable to authoritarianism.

“Global Majority communities face censorship, surveillance, and digital repression, significantly limiting their access to information and free expression,” said Shumaila Shahani, advocacy and policy lead at the Tech Global Institute, a non-profit organization that works with tech firms, governments, and civil society organizations to reduce equity and accountability gaps between technology platforms and the Global South. “We do not yet have full information on the impact of the funding cuts, but this undoubtedly puts internet freedom for the Global Majority at risk.”

“At a time when there is general suspicion around US funding and governments are pushing foreign agent laws, the suddenness of this move has put the non-profit sector at significant risk,” Malka Older, executive director of Global Voices, told Tech Policy Press. “In the long term, trust between organizations and donors will be damaged.”

“The US encouraged people to work on digital repression, promote internet freedom, and challenge the disproportionate use of technologies by governments. Today, the same people are being hung out to dry,” she regretted.

A gift to Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin

Should the US severely reduce or cease to support such programs, it will create an immediate opportunity for authoritarians, experts told Tech Policy Press.

For instance, China has vigorously courted countries in the Indo-Pacific through digital diplomacy and the establishment of innovation centers to promote Chinese technologies and the country’s authoritarian model of internet governance, according to a March 2024 report by Article 19, an international think tank. US funding for internet freedom, digital rights, and security supports a range of initiatives that counter such Chinese influence. Efforts such as the Digital Connectivity and Cybersecurity Partnership initiative, launched in 2018 by USAID and the State Department, helped provide financial resources and capacity support for civil society in affected countries to more effectively monitor and persuade their governments away from Chinese technologies and approaches to surveillance.

A number of interviews pointed to the likelihood that China, in particular, is set to take advantage of the cuts and the vacuum that may be created if civil society organizations aligned with pro-democracy goals cease to exist. This includes organizations working on internet freedom and censorship and also groups working on countering Chinese cyberattacks. China may also use the opportunity to gain ground in discussions over the future of internet governance.

“I am concerned that the US is throwing the baby out with the bathwater,” said Rana Siu Inboden, a senior fellow at the Strauss Center for International Security and Law at the University of Texas. “Many of the suspended projects advance US foreign policy initiatives, such as countering PRC Internet restrictions or resisting authoritarian countries use of transnational repression. The PRC will probably take advantage of this space. For example, I could easily see them funding additional development projects that have an authoritarian angle –that enables governments to extend their control over societies in ways that harm freedom of expression, the right to privacy and diminishes the role of independent civil society.”

Experts working in Central Asia told the Tech Policy Press that pro-Kremlin groups were already leveraging negative messaging around USAID by the Trump administration and targeting civil society organizations for receiving foreign money and promoting US interests in the region. Sources told Tech Policy Press that fact-checkers as well as feminist and LGBTQ advocacy groups were not only at risk of shutting down but also facing increased scrutiny from their governments.

Alena Epifanova, a research fellow at the Center for Order and Governance in Eastern Europe, Russia, and Central Asia at the German Council on Foreign Relations, told Tech Policy Press that groups working on internet freedom and the free flow of information in Central Asia, including Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, may be unable to sustain themselves absent US funding. That will cede ground to Russia. “If the United States won’t support projects in the internet freedom field, it will be a huge milestone,” said Epifanova.

The funding freeze could also hinder infrastructure development, leaving a vacuum that Russia and China could fill with solutions lacking transparency and accountability. When Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, USAID supported the expanded use of the country’s mobile application and online government portal, Diia, to support Ukrainians during wartime. In Manila, the agency launched an Open Radio Access Network (Open RAN) 5G interoperability lab to advance the Philippines' 5G rollout.

Few options for groups facing a funding cliff

While there is some chance that funds may be restored after the Trump administration completes its review of programs and restructuring of agencies, the delay in disbursement of funds may mean organizations cease to operate in the interim.

“Groups that are looking down the abyss may think they can find a way to sustain themselves for 90 days, but what happens then? Many groups are facing very dire circumstances,” said the Carnegie Endowment’s Feldstein.

Epifanova said some groups she is in touch with are “already quitting.” But, she said, “some of the people are ready to wait,” even though there is “a lot of uncertainty in the community.”

“There is massive confusion everywhere. Just the state of uncertainty is causing so much disruption," said Older of Global Voices.

There are few options for groups that are reliant on US government funding for their operational costs. There appears to be too little philanthropic money currently available to make up the difference and little comparable government support. Older said while donor organizations took their time and due diligence before issuing grants, it will now be easier for less scrupulous actors–be they large corporations, governments, or advocates–to fill the space. “USAID was not perfect. But changing the system this way does so much damage with little guarantee it will be beneficial to the world,” she added.

The Carnegie Endowment’s Feldstein was heartened to see protests against the cuts and questions about their legality garnering more attention. “Sadly, it’s probably too little too late,” he said. “Still, I would encourage lawmakers to use every tool at their disposal to fight back against this unnecessary and dangerous decision.”

This piece was updated on February 7 to include a statement from the US State Department.