Yesterday on Capitol Hill, at a bipartisan panel discussion hosted by the Center for a New American Security, U.S. Senator Chris Coons, D-Del., said Internet freedom, cybersecurity, and copyright enforcement are “complementary, not contradictory.”

In prepared remarks, Coons said:

U.S. global advocacy on this issue is complicated somewhat by the false perception that Internet freedom it is at odds with domestic cyber security measures and the protection of American intellectual property.

Also yesterday, in an op-ed in the Huffington Post, Senator Coons underscored the importance of Internet freedom to human rights.

With nearly one-third of mankind — some two billion people — now online, the Internet has clearly become the public square of the 21st century. It is where ideas are exchanged, viewpoints are debated, and commerce takes place, and in this modern, networked world, we must ensure the right to free expression is as protected online as they are offline.

Coons continued:

We can implement vigorous standards to protect intellectual property and network security while still wholeheartedly supporting Internet freedom globally.

Senator Coons is a co-chair of the Senate Global Internet Freedom Caucus.