Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman was at the University of Washington when it was announced that Seattle would be the host city for the APEC Forum next year.
SEATTLE — U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman spent time in Seattle this week to talk about technology and its relationship to foreign policy.
Sherman was at the University of Washington when it was announced that Seattle would be the host city for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum next year. This is an opportunity to welcome leaders from around the world.
Seattle will be the main venue for a summit promoting sustainable economic growth, trade and investment.
“I think it’s going to be a huge collaboration with the city of Seattle on a lot of levels,” Sherman said. “It’s going to be a really amazing event, where great minds will come together, represent everyone’s interests, and work on it. These challenges ahead. . . ”
During Sherman’s two-day visit, she spoke with students studying cyberspace and foreign policy at the UW Allen Library.
“It’s fantastic, but technology can also be used for bad things like disinformation, surveillance, controlling free speech,” Sherman said. “We’ve seen protests in Iran following the brutal killing of Mahsa Amini. The so-called moral police.”
Sherman cites a recent example, when thousands of people gathered to protest.
“They just want to express who they are and have a more open society in Iran. For that, they need to communicate, and the regime has shut down the internet, shut down people’s ability to communicate. So, that’s what we’re doing with students today. It’s critical to national security and foreign policy. Those are future areas that we all have to understand,” Sherman said.
Sherman also visited T-Mobile during this period to discuss U.S. technology policy and expansion opportunities.
“We discussed what the future might look like,” Sherman said. “There’s a 6G universe out there that nobody understands yet. We want to know what one company thinks about it, and we certainly have discussions with other companies as well.”
Extended Interview with Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman