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A United Nations General Assembly committee voted Monday to advance a Russian-drafted resolution, paving the way for a global cybercrime treaty over the opposition of the United States and Western allies.

A final General Assembly vote to adopt the resolution will be held in December.

U.S. and European officials and human rights groups view the resolution as an opportunity for authoritarian states such as Russia and China to create global norms that endorse state control of the Internet.

The 88-to-58 vote — with 34 abstentions — takes the assembly one step closer to a treaty. If the General Assembly adopts the resolution next month, a committee of experts will convene in August in New York to draft terms of reference guiding the writing of a treaty.
“This will divert resources to years of treaty negotiations and undermine urgent, real-time cooperation on cybercrime cases,” said a State Department official, who like other officials interviewed on the matter spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive matter.