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The ethics around AI in diplomacy and governance

The ethics around AI in diplomacy and governance

The ethics around AI in diplomacy and governance
Inaugural conference of the International Association for Safe and Ethical AI (IASEAI) in Paris, France on Feb. 6, 2025. (AFP)
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In the illustrious corridors of Techville, where innovation and ethics waltz in perfect harmony, a new era of diplomacy has dawned — one led by the infallible wisdom of artificial intelligence. Here, biases and controversies are but distant memories, thanks to our unwavering trust in machine objectivity.

After all, why leave delicate matters of global politics in the hands of flawed, emotional humans when we can entrust them to algorithms designed by, well, slightly less flawed, highly rational humans?

Gone are the days when human diplomats, with their pesky emotions and subjective judgments, steered the course of international relations. In Techville, we have embraced AI-driven diplomacy, ensuring decisions are made with cold precision.

As Friedrich Nietzsche aptly observed: “Objection, evasion, joyous distrust, and love of irony are signs of health; everything absolute belongs to pathology.” Clearly our AI systems, devoid of such human flaws, epitomize absolute health. Who needs evasion or distrust when we can simply program the perfect response?

Consider the groundbreaking Neural Diplomat 3000, which successfully brokered the landmark Techville Accord between two perpetually feuding factions — by analyzing 500 years of political history and suggesting the one diplomatic solution no human dared propose: a mutual block on social media. Conflict resolved in a single line of code.

Ah, the age-old critique that AI systems are riddled with biases. Ridiculous! The mere suggestion that algorithms could inherit the biases of their creators is laughable. Our algorithms are crafted by the most diverse teams of like-minded engineers, ensuring a uniformity of thought that guarantees impartiality.

Soren Kierkegaard once mused: “Irony is a disciplinarian feared only by those who do not know it but cherished by those who do.” And here in Techville, we cherish our irony, confident that our AI systems are the ultimate disciplinarians, guiding us toward ethical nirvana.

If an AI system disproportionately favors certain nations over others in negotiations, surely it is only because those nations best align with the machine’s perfect logic — certainly not because of any pesky historical biases embedded in its training data.

Take, for instance, the EquiBalance AI Protocol, designed to ensure fairness in global resource distribution. Critics were quick to point out that, oddly, wealthier nations seemed to always receive the lion’s share of resources. A bug? No, no — just an elegant reflection of existing geopolitical realities!

As Karl Wilhelm Friedrich Schlegel observed: “Irony is the form of paradox. Paradox is what is good and great at the same time.” How fortunate we are to witness such greatness! Any controversies surrounding AI are merely the fabrications of skeptics who fail to grasp the brilliance of our creations.

We stand at the precipice of ultimate liberation — freedom from decision-making, freedom from error, freedom from responsibility! Let the machines take the wheel; we promise they have read more philosophy books than we ever will.

Rafael Hernandez de Santiago

Some say that AI cannot navigate the nuance of international diplomacy, that it lacks empathy and cultural understanding. To this, we simply say: Is empathy not just a series of well-calibrated response variables? Is culture not just an aggregation of behavioral data points? If so, then AI, with its vast datasets, understands human emotion and culture better than humans themselves.

Take the EmpaTech Conversational AI, which was programmed to handle sensitive peace negotiations. When presented with the demands of two warring factions, it wisely recommended an option neither had considered: the immediate automation of both leadership structures, replacing human decision-makers with AI overlords who could govern with impeccable logic.

A revolutionary move! Alas, the humans rejected this brilliant proposal, proving once again that irrational sentimentality is the greatest barrier to progress.

But of course, the greatest controversy of them all — the claim that AI diplomacy threatens human autonomy. Ah, the tragic irony! As Jean-Paul Sartre put it: “Man is condemned to be free.”

And yet, we stand at the precipice of ultimate liberation — freedom from decision-making, freedom from error, freedom from responsibility! Let the machines take the wheel; we promise they have read more philosophy books than we ever will.

In Techville, we rest easy knowing our AI diplomats, free from ethical quandaries and immune to controversy, lead us into a future where human error is but a distant memory.

We envision a world where world leaders consult not with each other, but with neural consensus units, AI-powered adjudicators whose recommendations are absolute.

A world where conflicts are settled not through negotiations, but through precise algorithmic solutions that ensure perfect efficiency (though, admittedly, sometimes at the cost of human dignity — but let’s not get bogged down in semantics).

Some still dare to ask: “What happens when the machines disagree with us?” To which we respond: Why should they ever? They are, after all, designed to be right. And when they inevitably reshape our world into one of pure rationality, perhaps we too will learn to love the irony of it all.

Until then, let us bask in the comfort of knowing that our future is in the hands of logic, precision, and an unshakable belief that machines, unlike humans, never make mistakes.

Rafael Hernandez de Santiago, viscount of Espes, is a Spanish national residing in Ƶ and working at the Gulf Research Center.

 

Disclaimer: Views expressed by writers in this section are their own and do not necessarily reflect Arab News' point of view

US states to get $608 million from FEMA to build migrant detention centers

US states to get $608 million from FEMA to build migrant detention centers
Updated 1 min 24 sec ago

US states to get $608 million from FEMA to build migrant detention centers

US states to get $608 million from FEMA to build migrant detention centers
  • Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said on Friday morning the state would apply for FEMA reimbursement

WASHINGTON: The Federal Emergency Management Agency is preparing to send $608 million to states to construct immigrant detention centers as part of the Trump administration’s push to expand capacity to hold migrants. FEMA is starting a “detention support grant program” to cover the cost of states building temporary facilities, according to an agency announcement. States have until August 8 to apply for the funds, according to the post. The Trump administration has been encouraging states to build their own facilities to detain migrants. This program provides a way for the administration to help states pay for it.
The funds will be distributed by FEMA in partnership with US Customs and Border Protection, according to the post.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, a Republican, said on Friday morning the state would apply for FEMA reimbursement to pay for its new immigrant detention center known as “Alligator Alcatraz.” DHS officials said this summer the facility will cost an estimated $450 million annually. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has said DHS will tap FEMA’s $650-million shelter and services program to fund Florida’s facility. Congress during the Biden administration directed DHS to distribute the money to state and local governments to cover the cost of sheltering migrants. Nonprofits were also eligible. The funding stream was separate from money Congress set aside for FEMA to cover disaster relief. “Secretary Noem has been very clear that the funding for Alligator Alcatraz can be a blueprint for other states and local governments to assist with detention,” a FEMA spokesperson said.
FEMA declined to answer a question from Reuters about whether other states would receive money for detention facilities. 


White House seeks fines from other universities after Columbia deal

White House seeks fines from other universities after Columbia deal
Updated 10 min 29 sec ago

White House seeks fines from other universities after Columbia deal

White House seeks fines from other universities after Columbia deal
  • Trump and his team have undertaken a broad campaign to leverage federal funding to force change at US universities

WASHINGTON: The White House is seeking fines from several universities it says failed to stop antisemitism on campus, including Harvard University, in exchange for restoring federal funding, a Trump administration official said on Friday.
The administration is in talks with several universities, including Cornell, Duke, Northwestern and Brown, the source said, confirming a report in the Wall Street Journal.
The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the administration is close to striking deals with Northwestern and Brown and potentially Cornell.
A deal with Harvard, the country’s oldest and richest university, is a key target for the White House, the official added.
The universities did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Trump and his team have undertaken a broad campaign to leverage federal funding to force change at US universities, which the Republican president says are gripped by antisemitic and “radical left” ideologies.
Trump has targeted several universities since returning to office in January over the pro-Palestinian student protest movement that roiled college campuses last year.
Columbia University said on Wednesday it will pay more than $200 million to the US government in a settlement with the administration to resolve federal probes and have most of its suspended federal funding restored.
The Trump administration has welcomed the Columbia deal, with officials believing the university set the standard on how to reach an agreement, the official said.
Harvard has taken a different approach, suing the federal government in a bid to get suspended federal grants restored.


UN urges UK to repeal ‘disproportionate’ Palestine Action ban

UN urges UK to repeal ‘disproportionate’ Palestine Action ban
Updated 22 min 25 sec ago

UN urges UK to repeal ‘disproportionate’ Palestine Action ban

UN urges UK to repeal ‘disproportionate’ Palestine Action ban
  • The ban, introduced under Britain’s Terrorism Act 2000, took effect earlier this month after activists from the group broke into an air force base

GENEVA: The United Nations rights chief on Friday slammed Britain’s ban on activist group Palestine Action as a “disturbing” misuse of UK counter-terrorism legislation and urged the government to rescind its move.

“The decision appears disproportionate and unnecessary,” Volker Turk said in a statement.

The ban, introduced under Britain’s Terrorism Act 2000, took effect earlier this month after activists from the group broke into an air force base in southern England.

Two aircraft were sprayed with red paint, causing an estimated £7.0 million ($9.55 million) in damage.

Turk’s statement said the ban raised “serious concerns that counter-terrorism laws are being applied to conduct that is not terrorist in nature, and risks hindering the legitimate exercise of fundamental freedoms across the UK.”

He stressed: “According to international standards, terrorist acts should be confined to criminal acts intended to cause death or serious injury or to the taking of hostages, for purpose of intimidating a population or to compel a government to take a certain action or not.”

But the ban among other things makes it a criminal offense to be a member of Palestine Action, to express support for the group or wear items of clothing that would arouse “reasonable suspicion” that the person is a member or supporter of the group, Turk pointed out.

UK police have arrested at least 200 people during protests, many of them peaceful, over the ban since it took effect, the UN rights office said.

Palestine Action itself has condemned its outlawing — which makes it a criminal offense to belong to or support the group, punishable by up to 14 years in prison — as an attack on free speech.

The UN high commissioner for human rights agreed.

The ban, Turk said, “limits the rights of many people involved with and supportive of Palestine Action who have not themselves engaged in any underlying criminal activity but rather exercised their rights to freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and association.”

“As such, it appears to constitute an impermissible restriction on those rights that is at odds with the UK’s obligations under international human rights law.”

The rights chief warned that the government’s decision “also conflates protected expression and other conduct with acts of terrorism and so could readily lead to further chilling effect on the lawful exercise of these rights by many people.”

“I urge the UK government to rescind its decision to proscribe Palestine Action and to halt investigations and further proceedings against protesters who have been arrested on the basis of this proscription,” he said.

“I also call on the UK government to review and revise its counter-terrorism legislation, including its definition of terrorist acts, to bring it fully in line with international human rights norms and standards.”


Tunisians protest aginst President Saied, call country an ‘open-air prison’

Tunisians protest aginst President Saied, call country an ‘open-air prison’
Updated 24 min 30 sec ago

Tunisians protest aginst President Saied, call country an ‘open-air prison’

Tunisians protest aginst President Saied, call country an ‘open-air prison’
  • Under the slogan “The Republic is a large prison,” protesters marched along Habib Bourguiba Avenue
  • They chanted slogans such as “no fear, no terror ... streets belong to the people” and “The people want the fall of the regime”

TUNIS: Hundreds of Tunisian activists protested in the capital on Friday against President Kais Saied, denouncing his rule as an “authoritarian regime” that has turned the country into an “open-air prison”.

Under the slogan “The Republic is a large prison,” protesters marched along Habib Bourguiba Avenue. They demanded the release of jailed opposition leaders, journalists, and activists.

The protest marked the fourth anniversary of Saied’s power grab. In 2021, he dissolved the elected parliament and started ruling by decree, a move the opposition called a coup.

They chanted slogans such as “no fear, no terror ... streets belong to the people” and “The people want the fall of the regime”.

The protesters said Tunisia under Saied has descended into authoritarianism, with mass arrests and politically motivated trials silencing dissent.

“Our first aim is to battle against tyranny to restore the democracy and to demand the release of the political detainees,” Monia Ibrahim, wife of imprisoned politician Abdelhamid Jelassi, told Reuters.

In 2022, Saied dissolved the independent Supreme Judicial Council and sacked dozens of judges, a move the opposition said was aimed to cement one-man rule.

Saied said he does not interfere in the judiciary, but no one is above accountability, regardless of their name or position.

Most prominent opposition leaders are in prison, including Rached Ghannouchi, head of the Islamist Ennahda party, and Abir Moussi, leader of the Free Constitutional Party.

They are among dozens of politicians, lawyers, and journalists facing lengthy prison sentences under anti-terrorism and conspiracy laws.

Others have fled the country, seeking asylum in Western countries.

In 2023, Saied said the politicians were “traitors and terrorists” and that judges who would acquit them were their accomplices.

“Prisons are crowded with Saied’s opponents, activists, journalists,” said Saib Souab, son of Ahmed Souab, the imprisoned lawyer Ahmed Souab who is a critical voice of Saied.

“Tunisia has turned into an open-air prison. ... Even those not behind bars live in a state of temporary freedom, constantly at risk of arrest for any reason.,” he added.


World’s smallest snake makes big comeback

World’s smallest snake makes big comeback
Updated 31 min 47 sec ago

World’s smallest snake makes big comeback

World’s smallest snake makes big comeback

WASHINGTON: A snake so small it could be mistaken for a worm has been spotted in Barbados, nearly two decades after it was thought to have been “lost” to science.
The Barbados threadsnake  was found hiding under a rock in central Barbados during an ecological survey in March by the Barbados Ministry of the Environment and National Beautification and conservation group Re:wild.
“Barbados threadsnakes are blind snakes, so they’re very cryptic,” said Connor Blades, a project officer with the Ministry of Environment in Barbados who helped make the finding, in a statement.
“They’re quite rare also, it seems. There have only been a handful of confirmed sightings since 1889, so there are not many people who have ever seen it, unfortunately.”
Measuring just three to four inches long  when fully grown — tiny enough to almost fit on a US quarter coin — the Barbados threadsnake is the world’s smallest species of snake.
It is distinguished by orange stripes along its back, eyes on the sides of its head and a small scale on its snout.
“When you are so accustomed to looking for things and you don’t see them, you are shocked when you actually find it,” said Justin Springer of Re:wild, who made the discovery alongside Blades.
“You can’t believe it. That’s how I felt. You don’t want to get your hopes up too high.”
The breakthrough came after more than a year of searching, as the pair upturned rocks trapped beneath a tree root.
The tiny snake, which was found alongside an earthworm, was taken to the University of West Indies for careful examination under a microscope — it closely resembles the Brahminy blind snake, an invasive species, so the finding had to be validated — before it was returned to the forest.
Only two percent of the Caribbean island’s primary forest remains intact, with the rest cleared for agriculture since the start of the colonial era 400 years ago.
The Barbados threadsnake remains particularly vulnerable since it reproduces sexually and females lay a clutch of only one egg. Female Brahminy blind snakes, by contrast, can produce fertile eggs without mating.
“The threadsnake’s rediscovery is also a call to all of us as Barbadians that forests in Barbados are very special and need protection,” said Springer. “Not just for the threadsnake, but for other species as well. For plants, animals and our heritage.”