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cyber operations that amount to an armed attack or imminent threat thereof. 27 As a matter ofnational policy, the United States has expressed the view that when warranted, it will respond tohostile acts in cyberspace as it would to any other threat to the country. 28Measures taken in the exercise of the right of national self-defense in response to anarmed attack must be reported immediately to the U.N. Security Council in accordance withArticle 51 of the Charter of the United Nations. 2916.3.3.1 Use of Force Versus Armed Attack. The United States has long taken theposition that the inherent right of self-defense potentially applies against any illegal use offorce. 30 Thus, any cyber operation that constitutes an illegal use of force against a Statepotentially gives rise to a right to take necessary and proportionate action in self-defense. 3116.3.3.2 No Legal Requirement for a Cyber Response to a Cyber Attack. There isno legal requirement that the response in self-defense to a cyber armed attack take the form of acyber action, as long as the response meets the requirements of necessity and proportionality. 3227 Harold Hongju Koh, Legal Adviser, Department of State, International Law in Cyberspace: Remarks asPrepared for Delivery to the USCYBERCOM Inter-Agency Legal Conference (Sept. 18, 2012), reprinted in 54HARVARD INTERNATIONAL LAW JOURNAL ONLINE, 4 (Dec. 2012) (“Question 4: May a state ever respond to acomputer network attack by exercising a right of national self-defense? Answer 4: Yes. A state’s national rightof self-defense, recognized in Article 51 of the UN Charter, may be triggered by computer network activitiesthat amount to an armed attack or imminent threat thereof.”); Barack Obama, International Strategy forCyberspace: Prosperity, Security, and Openness in a Networked World, 10 (May 2011) (“Right of Self-Defense:Consistent with the United Nations Charter, states have an inherent right to self-defense that may be triggered bycertain aggressive acts in cyberspace.”).28 Barack Obama, International Strategy for Cyberspace: Prosperity, Security, and Openness in a NetworkedWorld, 14 (May 2011) (“When warranted, the United States will respond to hostile acts in cyberspace as we wouldto any other threat to our country. All states possess an inherent right to self-defense, and we recognize that certainhostile acts conducted through cyberspace could compel actions under the commitments we have with our militarytreaty partners. We reserve the right to use all necessary means—diplomatic, informational, military, andeconomic—as appropriate and consistent with applicable international law, in order to defend our Nation, our allies,our partners, and our interests. In so doing, we will exhaust all options before military force whenever we can; willcarefully weigh the costs and risks of action against the costs of inaction; and will act in a way that reflects ourvalues and strengthens our legitimacy, seeking broad international support whenever possible.”).29 Refer to § 1.11.5.6 (Reporting to the U.N. Security Council).30 Refer to § 1.11.5.2 (Use of Force Versus Armed Attack).31 Harold Hongju Koh, Legal Adviser, Department of State, International Law in Cyberspace: Remarks asPrepared for Delivery to the USCYBERCOM Inter-Agency Legal Conference (Sept. 18, 2012), reprinted in 54HARVARD INTERNATIONAL LAW JOURNAL ONLINE, 7 (Dec. 2012) (“To cite just one example of this, the UnitedStates has for a long time taken the position that the inherent right of self-defense potentially applies against anyillegal use of force. In our view, there is no threshold for a use of deadly force to qualify as an “armed attack” thatmay warrant a forcible response. But that is not to say that any illegal use of force triggers the right to use any andall force in response—such responses must still be necessary and of course proportionate.”).32 Harold Hongju Koh, Legal Adviser, Department of State, International Law in Cyberspace: Remarks asPrepared for Delivery to the USCYBERCOM Inter-Agency Legal Conference (Sept. 18, 2012), reprinted in 54HARVARD INTERNATIONAL LAW JOURNAL ONLINE, 4 (Dec. 2012) (“There is no legal requirement that the responseto a cyber armed attack take the form of a cyber action, as long as the response meets the requirements of necessityand proportionality.”).1000