The Nature Of Cyberspace Sovereignty And Its Transcendence Over Traditional Sovereignty Theory

The concept of sovereignty is not always there.In essence,it is the amplification of individual autonomy consciousness at the national level.Therefore,the initiation of modern sovereignty consciousness rises with the emergence of modern enlightenment and nation-state.With the development of human society and the change of social environment,sovereignty takes different forms for us in different periods.As the greatest invention of the 21 st century,the Internet is also constantly reconstructing the connotation and extension of modern sovereignty.Cyberspace sovereignty is the formal embodiment of national sovereignty in the network era.In essence,cyberspace sovereignty is a kind of national sovereignty,which is the extension of national sovereignty in cyberspace.However,due to the open,hidden and decentralized characteristics of the Internet,the nature(sovereignty attribute)and governability of cyberspace sovereignty are very different from traditional national sovereignty.In order to systematically and comprehensively understand cyberspace sovereignty,this paper starts with the evolution of the concept of sovereignty,combs the evolution process of modern sovereignty from three historical stages: the establishment of ancient sovereignty concept,the evolution of modern sovereignty concept and the development of modern and contemporary cyberspace sovereignty,and explains the specific connotation and extension of cyberspace sovereignty on this basis.Secondly,this paper discriminates the main international theories on the nature of cyberspace sovereignty,completes the definition of the reasonable nature of cyberspace sovereignty,and finally comes to the conclusion of the rationality and adaptability of cyberspace limited sovereignty theory;Thirdly,by comparing the characteristics and connotation of cyberspace sovereignty and traditional national sovereignty,this paper sorts out the specific transcendence of cyberspace sovereignty over traditional national sovereignty from three aspects: nature,principle and category;Finally,based on the characteristics of cyberspace sovereignty theory and the challenges and difficulties faced by the practice of modern and contemporary cyberspace sovereignty theory,this paper puts forward its own thinking on the strategic layout of cyberspace sovereignty from the three dimensions of technology,strategy and law.With the continuous change of Internet technology,cyberspace sovereignty is also in continuous development and change.However,no matter how it changes,cyberspace exists in the overall situation of the whole world.It is difficult to exist independently from the modern nation-state.Therefore,it is also difficult to escape the stereotype of the traditional theory of state sovereignty and always exists as a part of state sovereignty.Therefore,from the perspective of modern state governance,the essence of national sovereignty is eternal.Any country’s cyberspace sovereignty strategy must focus on the essence of national sovereignty,but in terms of practical path and governance means,it should be specifically designed to adapt to the specific manifestations of cyberspace and the objectives and requirements of different countries.This is also the basis for thinking about China’s cyberspace sovereignty strategy and its practical path in the new era.