EU Opens Digital Diplomacy Office in San Francisco

The European Union will, from today, have a new office in San Francisco, California, which will serve to reinforce the cooperation with the EU and the United States.

According to the Diplomatic Service of the European Union, the new office will improve relations with the US in terms of digital diplomacy and strengthen the EU’s capacity to reach out to the key public and private stakeholders, such as policymakers, the civil society, and the business community in the digital technology sector, SchengenVisaInfo.com reports.

“The opening of the office in San Francisco responds to the EU’s commitment to strengthen transatlantic technological cooperation and to drive the global digital transformation based on democratic values and standards,” the Vice President of the European Commission, Josep Borell, said.

He also noted that this is a concrete step to further strengthen the EU’s work cyber and countering hybrid threats as well as interference and foreign information manipulation.

The new office is a result of the EU-US Summit held in 2021, as both unions share the commitment to strengthen technological cooperation as a core part of the Conclusions on Digital Diplomacy, adopted by the Foreign Affairs Council about two months ago.

The EU office in San Francisco will prioritise promoting EU standards and technologies in the United States while also strengthening the cooperation with US stakeholders, including advancing the work of the EU-US Trade and Technology Council.

The head of the new office will be Gerard de Graaf, who has worked previously on digital policies, as well as the platform laws of the EU, the Digital Markets Act and the Digital Services Act. The office will be co-located with the Irish representatives’ office.

This office will work with the EU Delegation in Washington while being in coordination with the Headquarters in Brussels and in partnership with the representatives from the Member States, as well as all of the San Francisco Bay Area.

Digital technologies have brought new opportunities alongside risks in the lives of EU citizens and people in general. The EU has an increasing web of digital alliances and partnerships which can improve the geological balance of power.

Furthermore, investing in digital infrastructure under the Global Gateway strategy supports partners in defining their approach to technology based on the human approach.

To prevent issues, the Council has invited all relevant parties to make sure that digital diplomacy becomes the main component and an integral part of the EU’s action and is in tune with other EU external policies regarding cyber and hybrid threats, including information manipulation.