SAINT PETERSBURG, Russia, June 19 (KUNA) -- Organization of Asia-Pacific News Agencies' (OANA) began on Thursday its General Assembly in the Russian city of Saint Petersburg with the event focusing on curbing the misuse of AI and challenges sprouting out of it.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov deliver a speech via video, lauding the role played by OANA, which he described as a "fort for objective journalism" against the malicious whirlwind of AI use blowing through the international media scene.
Through the six-decades of its existence, ONA stood in line with journalistic integrity and news personnel rights, he affirmed, calling for increasing efforts in this regard.
Similarly, head of media at the Russian Foreign Minister Maria Zakharova commended OANA for being a bright for cultural cooperation, saying that the agency was keen conveying 75 percent of the news flow in its respective regions, which makes that a huge responsibility.
On inter-OANA cooperation, Andrey Kondrashov, Director General of TASS news agency, said for his part that there was a new initiative with China's Xinhua News Agency to establish an international observatory to counter fake media and news and increase transparency worldwide.
TASS news agency, in a statement, said that the current GA of OANA was held on the sideline of the Saint Petersburg economic forum, reflecting international trust in Moscow's media message to the world.
The General Assembly will be focusing on several topics of interest including how to counter false news, bolstering professional and ethical guidelines against the misuse of AI, boosting press freedom, and bringing cultures and people from around the world more together.
Heads of news agencies partaking in the event are expected to deliver their speeches to the event reflecting the solidarity amongst participants.
The General Assembly is expected to conclude tomorrow with the Petersburg declaration, calling for more transparency, and objectivity in the digital journalism era.
OANA was established in 1961 in an initiative by the UN and UNESCO. It has 41 news agencies representing 33 countries from Asia and the Pacific regions as well as other countries from beyond.
OANA's General Assembly is held every three years, formulating the general policies of the organization. KUNA joined OANA in 2000. (end) dan.gta