South Korea's Yoon warns of tech threat to democracy at summit
SEOUL — South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol on March 18 called fake news and disinformation based on artificial intelligence (AI) and digital technology threats to democracy, as his country hosted a gathering of senior global officials including from UK, the European Union and the United States.
Speaking at the opening of the Summit for Democracy, Yoon said countries have a duty to share experiences and wisdom so that AI and technology can be employed to promote democracy.
Technological disparity among countries is a major challenge, he said, describing it as a root case of how some countries fall behind in economic prosperity and fail to make progress on democracy.
"Fake news and disinformation based on artificial intelligence and digital technology not only violate individual freedom and human rights but also threaten democratic systems," Yoon said.
South Korea is hosting the third Summit for Democracy conference, an initiative by US President Joe Biden aimed at discussing ways to stop democratic backsliding and the erosion of rights and freedoms.
Digital threats to democracy, and how technology can promote democracy and universal human rights, are expected to be the main agenda of the three-day meetings.
"As authoritarian and repressive regimes deploy technologies to undermine democracy and human rights, we need to ensure that technology sustains and supports democratic values and norms," US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told the summit.
Like-minded governments and their people are working together to promote free and fair elections, Blinken said, noting that safeguarding democracy is a collective effort.
Neither Blinken nor Yoon mentioned any countries or leaders by name.
European Commission vice-president for values and transparency Vera Jourova said that 2024 is an election year around the globe and cited threats such as disinformation campaigns from the Kremlin, among other actors.
The Kremlin has repeatedly denied accusations of spreading false or misleading information.
Hours before the summit started, North Korea fired several short-range ballistic missiles into the sea for the first time in two months, in its latest show of force.
The conference also kicked off just after Russian President Vladimir Putin was declared victor on March 17 in a record post-Soviet landslide in a presidential election.
The result means Putin, who rose to power in 1999, is set to start a new six-year term that will see him overtake Josef Stalin and become Russia's longest-serving leader in more than 200 years if he completes it.
A White House National Security Council spokesperson criticised the election and said it is "obviously not free nor fair, given how Putin has imprisoned political opponents and prevented others from running against him".
Putin told reporters he regards Russia's election as democratic and said protests organised by supporters of opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who died in an Arctic prison in February, against him have no effect on the election's outcome.
The summit is also being attended by British Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden, who said democracy faces threats on multiple fronts, including cyber attackers disrupting campaigns, populists embracing falsehoods and "autocrats holding sham elections".
Speaking at a separate session, Blinken said Washington is releasing the first guidance of its kind for tech companies to help prevent attacks on human rights defenders online.
ALSO READ: North Korea's AI development raises sanctions concerns, report says
Disclaimer: The copyright of this article belongs to the original author. Reposting this article is solely for the purpose of information dissemination and does not constitute any investment advice. If there is any infringement, please contact us immediately. We will make corrections or deletions as necessary. Thank you.
