Timor-Leste and Australia discuss Cybersecurity Co-operation
The Minister for the Presidency of the Council of Ministers, Agio Pereira, accompanied by the Director-General of the National Intelligence Service, Longuinhos Monteiro, met on March 13th, 2025, with a delegation from the Government of Australia, led by the Australia's Ambassador for Cyber Affairs and Critical Technology, Brendan Dowling and the Australian Ambassador to Timor-Leste, Caitlin Wilson. Ambassador Brendan Dowling coordinates Australia's initiatives in cybersecurity and critical technology, promoting international collaboration to address emerging challenges in this area. 
The meeting focused on emerging challenges in the area of cybersecurity, particularly the risks associated with the new submarine cable connection, as well as opportunities for technical collaboration to strengthen Timor-Leste's digital resilience. Among the initiatives discussed were identifying vulnerabilities, strengthening inter-institutional coordination and carrying out cybersecurity exercises to test the national response capacity to cyber threats. 
The need to establish a national cybersecurity strategy and an effective response mechanism was addressed, as well as to strengthen coordination between the national institutions responsible for managing cyber threats and to explore legal and political frameworks for protecting critical infrastructures. 
As next steps, the Timorese’s government will identify its specific needs with a view to discussing possible formal agreements to strengthen bilateral cooperation in this area and carry out an assessment to detect gaps and vulnerabilities. 
Both sides recognized the importance of tackling cybersecurity challenges and expressed their willingness to deepen technical collaboration in this area to safeguard digital infrastructure and national security. Ambassador Brendan Dowling emphasized the Australian Government's willingness to support Timor-Leste in responding to these threats, stressing the importance of a joint effort to ensure the protection of national cyberspace.
