EU Statement – UN Security Council Arria-formula Meeting: AI: its impact on hate speech and disinformation and misinformation

- CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY -

I have the honour to speak on behalf of the EU and its Member States.

The Candidate Countries Türkiye*, North Macedonia*, Montenegro^*, Albania^*, Ukraine, the Republic of Moldova, Bosnia and Herzegovina^* and Georgia, as well as San Marino align themselves with this statement.

Your Excellency, Omran Sharaf, Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs for Advanced Science and Technology of the United Arab Emirates,

Ambassador Ferit Hoxha of Albania,

Thank you for organizing today's exchange. Artificial intelligence carries promise of both progress and risks, including the spread of hate speech and disinformation, which might undermine democratic processes and violate human rights. Given its expected impact on many aspects of our lives and - by extension - the work of the UN, it is imperative that we analyse the potential implications.

In that context, the intersection of today's topics calls for considered reflection and I thank the briefers for their insights.

I will touch on two aspects among the many questions raised:

First, a word on artificial intelligence. The EU recognizes the need to make this technology work for the benefit of citizens and societies. Accordingly, the EU is advocating for artificial intelligence that is responsible, transparent, trustworthy, human rights-based and human-centric with robust governance to safeguard benefits while protecting the public interest. The recent EU Regulation on Artificial Intelligence goes in that direction, including through a risk classification approach.

The EU welcomes the High-level Advisory Board on AI and looks forward to its contribution.

Second, a few thoughts on disinformation and hate speech as this relates to artificial intelligence.

Disinformation and foreign information manipulation and interference is an issue of concern for the EU, and is considered to be a political and security threat with the potential of reducing reliable and trustworthy information and to undermine trust in democracy and public institutions. Artificial intelligence can both supercharge disinformation while also providing tools for combatting falsehoods.

Allow me to underline in this context that the EU supports the preparations of a Code of Conduct for information integrity on digital platforms, proposed by the Secretary General, to ensure accountability of multiple actors, whether public or private. Such a Code should take into account existing UN work, including recent relevant UNESCO guidelines. I also wish to stress that the multifaceted nature of this issue requires a multi-stakeholder approach.

The EU fundamentally believes that it is crucial to empower communities and individuals to make their own informed choices and promote media literacy to build resilience against hate speech and disinformation while ensuring the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms, including freedom of expression.

This also entails working to close the Global Digital Divide to enable resilience against disinformation.

Allow me finally to mention gender based violence, which can also be aggravated by biased algorithms and artificial intelligence.

Mr. Chair,

Going forward, the EU will engage actively in these important discussions, including on the New Agenda for Peace, the Pact for the Future and its chapter on digitalization and science, technology and innovation, the Global Digital Compact as well as the broader work towards the Summit of the Future.

Thank you.

*Türkiye, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina continue to be part of the Stabilisation and Association Process.

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