Vita gazette – The G7 Leaders Summit was motivated by two critical issues for the future of humanity. One is artificial intelligence, which Pope Francis drew attention to, and the other is the migration issue, which concerns the whole world and changes, strengthens or weakens governments… The Pope: “AI can bring greater injustice.” The leaders “launched the G7 Coalition to prevent and counter the smuggling of migrants,” the summit’s final declaration

The G7’s work culminated in a final declaration. On the second and final day of their summit in Italy, the Group of Seven, representing the world’s leading industrialized nations, addressed a range of global issues. These included migration, artificial intelligence, economic security, and the Indo-Pacific region. The G7 leaders, in a display of unity, reaffirmed their commitment to confront global challenges “at this critical juncture in history.”

World leaders, including U.S. President Joe Biden, gathered for the Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment event at the G7 World Leaders Summit in Borgo Egnazia, Italy, on Thursday, [June 13, 2024]. Notably, Pope Francis became the first pontiff to address a G7 summit, delivering a speech on artificial intelligence. The event also saw the participation of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

The gathering in Italy’s southern Puglia region demonstrated the G7’s comprehensive approach, covering many major topics. These included financial support for Ukraine, the war in Gaza, climate change, Iran, the situation in the Red Sea, gender equality, and China’s industrial policy and economic security. This diverse agenda provided a thorough understanding of the global issues at hand.

 “In a testament to our collective commitment, we are working together and with others to tackle the pressing challenges of our time,” the G7 leaders stated in a final communique. They expressed solidarity with Ukraine, support for a deal that would lead to an immediate cease-fire and release of hostages in Gaza, investment in sustainable infrastructure in Africa, and commitments to address climate change and migration.

Divisions did emerge during the summit, however, notably over the lack of a reference to abortion in the summit’s final declaration.

On Friday, the second and final day of their summit in Italy, the Group of Seven leading industrialised nations turned their attention to migration, artificial intelligence, economic security, and the Indo-Pacific region. In a show of determination, the G7 leaders stressed their resolve to meet global challenges “at a crucial moment in history.”

 “We are working together and with others to address the pressing challenges of our time,” the G7 leaders said in a final communique, noting their solidarity with Ukraine, support for a deal that would lead to an immediate cease-fire and release of hostages in Gaza, investment in sustainable infrastructure in Africa and commitments to address climate change and migration.

Migration was the first topic of discussion Friday, with the leaders mulling ways to combat trafficking and increase investment in countries from where migrants start on often life-threatening journeys. The issue is exciting to summit host Italy, which lies on one of the major routes into the European Union for people fleeing war and poverty in Africa, the Middle East and Asia.

The leaders “launched the G7 Coalition to prevent and counter the smuggling of migrants,” the summit’s final declaration said, noting the seven nations would “focus on the root causes of irregular migration, efforts to enhance border management and curb transnational organised crime, and safe and regular pathways for migration.” Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni, known for her hard-line stance on migration, has been eager to increase investment and funding for African nations to reduce migratory pressure on Europe. British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said he and Meloni – who he described as “fantastic” – saw “eye to eye” on migration. “We can’t have criminal gangs decide who comes to our countries,” Sunak said.

Meloni has a controversial five-year deal with neighbouring Albania, under which the Balkan country will host thousands of asylum-seekers while Italy processes their claims. She has also spearheaded the “Mattei Plan” for Africa, a continent-wide strategy to increase economic opportunities at home and discourage migration.

The United States has also been struggling with a growing number of migrants. President Joe Biden introduced new policies to curb migration after a bill he tried to get through Congress failed to pass. However, the future of the new policies is still being determined after immigrant rights advocates challenged them with lawsuits.

Apart from the G7 nations of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the U.S., the Italian hosts also invited several African leaders — Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, Kenyan President William Ruto and Tunisian President Kais Saied — to press Meloni’s migration and development initiatives. However, rights groups have decried what they perceive as a lack of ambition in supporting developing countries, a situation that urgently needs to be addressed.

Pope Francis has already expressed his concerns about AI on several occasions: in his message he highlighted the importance of responsible and humane use of AI. Furthermore, the Vatican launched an initiative in 2020 to promote an ethical dimension in the application of algorithms, with the aim of keeping the technology “anthropocentric” and preventing negative impacts on employment.

Papa: AI can bring greater injustice”

The G7’s main concern appears to be the effect of AI on digital disinformation. 

The Pope asked that AI be connected to an ethical dimension: “The vigorous technological advancement makes artificial intelligence a fascinating and terrible tool at the same time and requires reflection that is up to the task”, he began. “Talking about technology is talking about what it means to be human and therefore about our unique condition between freedom and responsibility; that is, it means talking about ethics”.

“We cannot hide the concrete risk, since it is inherent in its fundamental mechanism, that artificial intelligence limits the vision of the world to realities that can be expressed in numbers and enclosed in pre-packaged categories, excluding the contribution of other forms of truth and imposing anthropological models, uniform socio-economic and cultural”, he warned. “The technological paradigm embodied by artificial intelligence then risks making room for a much more dangerous paradigm.”

The Pope then highlighted: “Faced with the wonders of machines, which seem to be able to choose independently, we must be clear that the human being must always be left with the decision.” The use for military purposes was also a theme: “It is urgent to rethink the development and use of devices such as the so-called ‘lethal autonomous weapons’ to ban their use, starting already with an active and concrete commitment to introduce an ever greater and meaningful human control. No machine should ever have to choose whether to take the life of a human being.”