Eightieth Session of the UN General Assembly
High-Level Week
High-level Multi-stakeholder Informal Meeting to Launch the Global Dialogue on Artificial Intelligence Governance
Statement on behalf of the European Union and its Member States, delivered by H.E. Baiba Braže, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Latvia
New York, 25 September 2025
Distinguished Representatives, Honourable Ministers, Distinguished Guests,
I have the honour to deliver this statement on behalf of the European Union and its Member States.
Thank you for gathering us today, as we mark a milestone in international cooperation on AI governance. And I thank the Secretary General for providing the update on the way forward.
And I would like to use this opportunity to thank Spain and Costa Rica for their countries’ leadership in steering the process which brought us here today, and also to commend the work of the Permanent Representatives and experts.
The EU welcomes the launch of the first Global Dialogue on AI governance, as well as the decision to establish an Independent International Scientific Panel on AI. By doing so, we are delivering on our promise to take action to promote scientific understanding of AI, and to ensure inclusive multi-stakeholder discussion on AI at the UN.
We are, collectively, demonstrating that the UN is an appropriate forum to address the global impact of emerging technologies. The importance of developing a human-centric and human rights based approach to AI governance cannot be overstated.
We therefore look forward to the convening of the First Global Dialogue next year in Geneva, as a multi-stakeholder space to allow tailored exchanges that will help us make progress on AI governance year after year, building on the expertise and knowledge of all stakeholders.
As the Secretary-General has just announced the launch of the selection process for the Panel members, let me also highlight that the added value of the Panel lies in its multi-disciplinarity.
Panel members should come from the broad range of disciplines required to survey the state of AI across a wide array of technical, societal, social, legal, ethical, cultural and economic factors. It should of course include AI experts, but it is important also to include those who can give us comprehensive understanding of the opportunities, risks and impacts of AI on humanity.
Moving forward, we expect the broad involvement of all relevant UN entities in the efforts on global AI governance, to ensure coherence and prevent duplication of efforts – be it by supporting the SG in his recommendation of members for the Panel, the organisation of the Dialogues, and the overall secretarial support to those mechanisms. There is a lot of in-house expertise to draw from within the UN system, as well as outside, to promote integrated approaches and resource efficiency.
As the Panel and the Dialogue will contribute to building the UN membership’s capacity on AI by fostering shared knowledge, common understanding, and pooled experiences, the European Union is eager to continue sharing its own experience in understanding and governing AI, through the AI Act and policy measures, as well as supporting research, innovation, deployment and capacity-building.
As we shape the future of AI, we must do so with a clear commitment to a human-centric vision, grounded in fundamental freedoms and human rights, democratic values, and the rule of law.
Excellencies,
The EU looks forward to seeing the Panel and Dialogue up and running, and is confident they will quickly become valuable tools to continue advancing AI discussions globally.
And I thank you.