UN, Red Cross Press States to Negotiate 2 Autonomous Weapons Bans Before November
Updated
Updated · UN News · Aug 25
UN, Red Cross Press States to Negotiate 2 Autonomous Weapons Bans Before November
3 articles · Updated · UN News · Aug 25
Summary
António Guterres and ICRC President Mirjana Spoljaric Egger urged governments to move from debate to negotiating a legally binding treaty on lethal autonomous weapons, calling the November CCW review conference the clearest route.
Two categories are at the center of the push: autonomous weapons whose effects are unpredictable, and anti-personnel systems that target humans directly, which the UN says cross a moral red line by handing lethal decisions to machines.
The appeal cites AI-driven battlefield advances and reports of fully autonomous or AI-guided drones already being used, raising fears that machines cannot reliably distinguish civilians, surrendering fighters or the wounded in fast-changing combat.
The UN and Red Cross first issued the joint appeal in 2023 and had asked states to negotiate a binding instrument by 2026; Tuesday's renewed warning says years of technical groundwork at the UN General Assembly and CCW must now produce action.