Vol 3 No 1 (2025)
Articles
Harmonization vs. Fragmentation: The Struggle to Govern Cross-Border Data in Trade Agreements
Published
April 9, 2025
Keywords
- cross-border data flows,
- national security,
- nternational digital trade rules,
- WTO e-commerce
How to Cite
Nabiebu, M., Ijiomah, A., Ekpo, M., & Agube, N. (2025). Harmonization vs. Fragmentation: The Struggle to Govern Cross-Border Data in Trade Agreements. Advances in Law, Pedagogy, and Multidisciplinary Humanities, 3(1), 173-190. Retrieved from https://jurnal.fs.umi.ac.id/index.php/alpamet/article/view/908
Abstract
In the modern global economy, digital trade rules—particularly those governing cross-border data flows—have become a pivotal arena for both international competition and cooperation. States have adopted markedly divergent regulatory approaches, reflecting their distinct economic, political, and social priorities. The United States champions a market-driven model, advocating for minimal restrictions on data mobility to maximize commercial freedom. In contrast, the European Union enforces stringent data protection standards under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), prioritizing individual privacy over unconstrained data flows. Meanwhile, developing nations often retain regulatory flexibility to nurture domestic industries and safeguard digital sovereignty. China presents a unique case, navigating tensions between domestic industrial policy, national security imperatives, and global integration. Its cross-border data governance framework seeks to balance economic openness with state control, permitting data transfers while imposing strict localization requirements in sensitive sectors. This approach underscores the broader challenge: how to harmonize conflicting regulatory paradigms without fragmenting the global digital trade system. This article contends that a narrowly tailored WTO e-commerce agreement could offer a viable solution. By establishing clear yet adaptable rules on cross-border data flows, such an agreement could accommodate legitimate policy exceptions—including security, privacy, and developmental concerns—while preventing protectionist overreach. A flexible multilateral framework, rather than rigid uniformity, may be the most pragmatic path forward in governing the digital economy.
References
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Heath, J. B. (2020). Trade and security among the ruins. Duke Journal of Comparative and International Law, 30(2), 223–266.
Hong, Y. (2021a). The strategic position of the US and Europe in data competition and China’s response: From the dual perspectives of domestic legislation and negotiation of economic and trade agreements. International Law Studies, 6, 69–81.
Hong, Y. (2021b). China’s plan to promote the cross-border flows of data along the “One Belt, One Road”—Development in the context of the U.S. and European paradigms. China Law Review, 2, 30–42.
Liu, J., & Gong, Y. (2013). An analysis of the Obama administration’s “rules diplomacy” towards China. Forum of World Economic and Political, 3, 84–96.
Meltzer, J. (2019). Governing digital trade. World Trade Review, 18(S1), S23–S48. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1474745618000507
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Okoko, C. O., & Ahamefule, I. C. (2023). Historicizing Political Dichotomy Among the Double Unilineal but Prevalently Matrilineal Cross River Igbo. British Journal of Multidisciplinary and Advanced Studies, 4(5), 1-26.
Okon, I. E., & Ahamefule, I. C. (2023). Indigenous Agrarian Institutions for Capital Formations among the Ibibio People, 1900-2000. Akwa Ibom State University Journal of Arts, 4(1).
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Ota, E. N., Okoko, C. O., & Ahamefule, I. C. (2022). Fiscal federalism and resource control in Nigeria: Deconstructing conundrum. Global Journal of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences, 10(1), 1-20.
Qi, A., & Zhu, G. (2016). On the establishment and improvement of the national data sovereignty system. Journal of Soochow University (Philosophy and Social Sciences Edition), 1, 83–88.
Shaffer, G. C., & Pollack, M. A. (2010). Hard vs. soft law: Alternatives, complements, and antagonists in international governance. Minnesota Law Review, 94(3), 706–799.
Sun, Y. (2016). International institutional pressure and China’s free trade zone strategy. Quarterly Journal of International Politics, 1, 125–161.
Taheri, R., Adams, O., & Stern, P. (2021). DEPA: The world’s first digital-only trade agreement. Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada. https://www.asiapacific.ca/publication/depa-worlds-first-digital-only-trade-agreement
Tang, X. (2021). Between data security and openness: A Chinese approach to international rulemaking for digital trade. Political Science and Law, 12, 26–38.
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Usendok, I. G., Akpan, A., & Ekpe, A. N. (2022). Effect of Board Size and Board Composition on Organizational Performance of Selected Banks in Nigeria. International Journal of Business and Management Review, 10(5), 1-25. AKSUJACOG, 1(3).
Uto, S. C., Uwa, K. L., & Akpan, A. (2024). Knowledge management and competitive advantage in selected manufacturing firms in Akwa Ibom State. International Journal of Business and Management Review, 12(1), 1-20.
Wang, R. (2018). Policy perceptions and suggestions on data cross-border flows: From the perspective of comparison and reflection on U.S. and European policies. Information Security and Communication Privacy, 3, 41–53.
Wang, Y. (2022). Implement global security initiatives to safeguard world peace and tranquility. Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China. https://www.mfa.gov.cn/wjbzhd/202204/t20220424_10672812.shtml
Wei, L. (2022). Implement the overall national security concept and effectively build a data security barrier. China Information Security. https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/9UaqliGKIM7FDTlrECoeOA
Xu, D. (2020). On the legal guarantee of two-way compliance of cross-border data flow regulating enterprises. Eastern Law, 2, 185–197.
Zhang, L., & Peng, Z. (2022). The influence of China’s international rules on data security needs to be improved. Information Security and Communication Privacy, 3, 27–32.
Zhu, F. (2021). The international game of digital trade rules, “seeking for common” dilemma and China’s strategy. Economic Review Journal, 8, 40–49.
Burri, M. (2017). The governance of data and data flows in trade agreements: The pitfalls of legal adaptation. UC Davis Law Review, 51(1), 65–132.
Burri, M. (2021). A WTO agreement on electronic commerce: An enquiry into its legal substance and viability. Trade Law 4.0 Working Paper Series. https://ssrn.com/abstract=3976133
Chin, Y.-C. (2018). The legitimation of media regulation in China. Chinese Political Science Review, 3(2), 172–194. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41111-018-0097-z
Chin, Y.-C. (2020). Internet governance in China: The network governance approach. In Z. Wang & D. Pavlicevic (Eds.), Social relations and political development in China: Change and continuity in the ‘new era’ (pp. 134–153). Routledge.
Chin, Y.-C., & Li, K. (2021). Sovereignty in cyberspace: EU and China compared. Paper presented at TPRC49: The 49th Research Conference on Communication, Information and Internet Policy. https://ssrn.com/abstract=3900752
Chin, Y.-C., Park, A., & Li, K. (2022). A comparative study on false information governance in Chinese and American social media platforms. Policy and Internet, 14(2), 263–283. https://doi.org/10.1002/poi3.297
Cory, N. (2019). Why China should be disqualified from participating in WTO negotiations on digital trade rules. Information Technology & Innovation Foundation. https://itif.org/publications/2019/05/09/why-china-should-be-disqualified-participating-wto-negotiations-digital
Council of Europe. (2019). Data protection. http://www.coe.int/dataprotection
Cyberspace Administration of China. (2022). Measures for data export security assessment. http://www.gov.cn/zhengce/zhengceku/2022-07/08/content_5699851.htm
Desierto, D. (2018). Protean ‘national security’ in global trade wars, investment walls, and regulatory controls: Can ‘national security’ ever be unreviewable in international economic law? Blog of the European Journal of International Law. https://www.ejiltalk.org/national-security-defenses-in-trade-wars-and-investment-walls-us-v-china-and-eu-v-us/
Dr2 Consultants. (2022). European Data Act: A harmonized framework for accessing and sharing data. https://dr2consultants.eu/european-data-act/
Drake-Brockman, J., Gari, G., Harbinson, S., Hoekman, B., Nordås, H. K., & Stephenson, S. (2021). Digital trade and the WTO: Top trade negotiation priorities for cross-border data flows and online trade in services (Jean Monnet TIISA Network Working Paper No. 11-2021). https://iit.adelaide.edu.au/ua/media/1551/wp-2021-11-j.drake-brockman-et-al.pdf
Duru, I. U., Eze, M. A., Yusuf, A., Udo, A. A., & Saleh, A. S. (2023). Effect of reward systems on workers' performance at the university of Abuja. Asian Journal of Social Sciences and Management Studies, 10(1), 9-18.
Duru, I. U., Eze, M. A., Yusuf, A., Udo, A. A., & Saleh, A. S. (2022). Influence of motivation on workers' performance at the University of Abuja. International Journal of Social and Administrative Sciences, 7(2), 69-84.
Elms, D. (2021). China applies to join DEPA. Asian Trade Centre. http://asiantradecentre.org/talkingtrade/china-applies-to-join-depa
European Commission. (2020). Joint press statement by European Commissioner for Justice Didier Reynders and U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross. https://ec.europa.eu/info/news/joint-press-statement-european-commissioner-justice-didier-reynders-and-us-secretary-commerce-wilbur-ross-7-august-2020-2020-aug-07_en
European Commission. (2022). European Commission and United States joint statement on Trans-Atlantic Data Privacy Framework. https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_22_2087
Gao, H. (2018). Regulation of digital trade in US free trade agreements: From trade regulation to digital regulation. Legal Issues of Economic Integration, 45(1), 47–70. https://doi.org/10.54648/LEIE2018004
Gao, H. (2021). Data regulation in trade agreements: Different models and options ahead. In M. Smeets (Ed.), Adapting to the digital trade era: Challenges and opportunities (pp. 322–334). WTO Press.
Greenleaf, G. (2019). G20 makes declaration of ‘Data Free Flow With Trust’: Support and dissent. Privacy Laws & Business International Report, 160, 18–19.
He, B. (2019). The development challenges and countermeasures of data sovereignty. Journal of Cyber and Information Law, 1, 201–216.
Heath, J. B. (2020). Trade and security among the ruins. Duke Journal of Comparative and International Law, 30(2), 223–266.
Hong, Y. (2021a). The strategic position of the US and Europe in data competition and China’s response: From the dual perspectives of domestic legislation and negotiation of economic and trade agreements. International Law Studies, 6, 69–81.
Hong, Y. (2021b). China’s plan to promote the cross-border flows of data along the “One Belt, One Road”—Development in the context of the U.S. and European paradigms. China Law Review, 2, 30–42.
Liu, J., & Gong, Y. (2013). An analysis of the Obama administration’s “rules diplomacy” towards China. Forum of World Economic and Political, 3, 84–96.
Meltzer, J. (2019). Governing digital trade. World Trade Review, 18(S1), S23–S48. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1474745618000507
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China. (2020). Global Initiative on Data Security. https://www.fmprc.gov.cn/web/ziliao_674904/tytj_674911/zcwj_674915/202010/t20201029_9869292.shtml
Mishra, N. (2020). The trade–(cyber)security dilemma and its impact on global cybersecurity governance. Journal of World Trade, 54(4), 567–590. https://doi.org/10.54648/TRAD2020023
Okoko, C. O., & Ahamefule, I. C. (2023). Historicizing Political Dichotomy Among the Double Unilineal but Prevalently Matrilineal Cross River Igbo. British Journal of Multidisciplinary and Advanced Studies, 4(5), 1-26.
Okon, I. E., & Ahamefule, I. C. (2023). Indigenous Agrarian Institutions for Capital Formations among the Ibibio People, 1900-2000. Akwa Ibom State University Journal of Arts, 4(1).
Olson, S. (2021). The conventional wisdom on China and the CPTPP is wrong. Hinrich Foundation. https://www.hinrichfoundation.com/research/article/ftas/china-and-cptpp/
Olson, S. (2022). Ukraine forces debate on WTO and national security. Hinrich Foundation. https://www.hinrichfoundation.com/research/article/wto/ukraine-debate-on-wto-national-security/
Ota, E. N., Okoko, C. O., & Ahamefule, I. C. (2022). Fiscal federalism and resource control in Nigeria: Deconstructing conundrum. Global Journal of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences, 10(1), 1-20.
Qi, A., & Zhu, G. (2016). On the establishment and improvement of the national data sovereignty system. Journal of Soochow University (Philosophy and Social Sciences Edition), 1, 83–88.
Shaffer, G. C., & Pollack, M. A. (2010). Hard vs. soft law: Alternatives, complements, and antagonists in international governance. Minnesota Law Review, 94(3), 706–799.
Sun, Y. (2016). International institutional pressure and China’s free trade zone strategy. Quarterly Journal of International Politics, 1, 125–161.
Taheri, R., Adams, O., & Stern, P. (2021). DEPA: The world’s first digital-only trade agreement. Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada. https://www.asiapacific.ca/publication/depa-worlds-first-digital-only-trade-agreement
Tang, X. (2021). Between data security and openness: A Chinese approach to international rulemaking for digital trade. Political Science and Law, 12, 26–38.
US Department of Commerce. (2022). Global Cross-Border Privacy Rules Declaration. https://www.commerce.gov/global-cross-border-privacy-rules-declaration
Usendok, I. G., Akpan, A., & Ekpe, A. N. (2022). Effect of Board Size and Board Composition on Organizational Performance of Selected Banks in Nigeria. International Journal of Business and Management Review, 10(5), 1-25. AKSUJACOG, 1(3).
Uto, S. C., Uwa, K. L., & Akpan, A. (2024). Knowledge management and competitive advantage in selected manufacturing firms in Akwa Ibom State. International Journal of Business and Management Review, 12(1), 1-20.
Wang, R. (2018). Policy perceptions and suggestions on data cross-border flows: From the perspective of comparison and reflection on U.S. and European policies. Information Security and Communication Privacy, 3, 41–53.
Wang, Y. (2022). Implement global security initiatives to safeguard world peace and tranquility. Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China. https://www.mfa.gov.cn/wjbzhd/202204/t20220424_10672812.shtml
Wei, L. (2022). Implement the overall national security concept and effectively build a data security barrier. China Information Security. https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/9UaqliGKIM7FDTlrECoeOA
Xu, D. (2020). On the legal guarantee of two-way compliance of cross-border data flow regulating enterprises. Eastern Law, 2, 185–197.
Zhang, L., & Peng, Z. (2022). The influence of China’s international rules on data security needs to be improved. Information Security and Communication Privacy, 3, 27–32.
Zhu, F. (2021). The international game of digital trade rules, “seeking for common” dilemma and China’s strategy. Economic Review Journal, 8, 40–49.