Adobe Stock/Parilov According to the authors of the appeal, further development of autonomous weapons will lead to escalation and weakening of human control over the use of force. The heads of the UN and the ICRC called for the immediate creation of legal norms regulating autonomous weapons systems Peace and Security
States must move immediately to develop legally binding regulations governing the use of autonomous weapons systems, including drones. This is stated in a joint address by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and President of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) Mirjana Spoljaric.
According to them, the world is rapidly approaching a dangerous point beyond which a machine will be able to independently select a person as a target – and this is an “ethically unacceptable situation.”
Guterres and Spolyarich recalled that three years ago they already called on countries to establish bans and restrictions on such systems. Since then, technology has developed so quickly that the gap between the capabilities of weapons and current legal norms has only widened. The use of advanced autonomous systems on the battlefield increases risks to civilians and infrastructure, exacerbating human suffering in armed conflicts.
According to the authors of the appeal, further development of autonomous weapons will lead to escalation and weakening of human control over the use of force. The race to increasingly autonomous systems is already underway, and even the engineers who create these technologies are expressing alarm. “Even if the creators of this technology call for limiting it, states cannot afford to remain on the sidelines,” the appeal emphasizes.
Guterres and Spolyarich believe that this year should be a turning point. Significant progress has already been made in the UN General Assembly and in the Group of Governmental Experts of the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons in understanding what human control must be exercised and what measures are necessary to comply with international humanitarian law. Now, in their opinion, it is necessary to show political will: it is time to move from discussions to actions.
The heads of the UN and the ICRC called on states to begin negotiations on the adoption of a legally binding treaty with clearly defined restrictions and prohibitions. Delay, they warn, will lead to even greater loss of life.
Particular attention is paid to the upcoming VII Review Conference of the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons, which will be held in November. Guterres and Spoljaric expect that states will be able to decide to begin negotiations on a legally binding document.
“The painstaking work that has been done over the past three years represents an ideal basis for such negotiations,” the appeal says.
Guterres and Spoljaric emphasize that development will continue weapons that make war easier undermine collective efforts to create a safer world. Innovation, they say, should serve humanity, not threaten it.