Shibbir Ahmed, New York: The United Nations and the International Committee of the Red Cross on Tuesday issued a renewed and urgent call for international rules governing autonomous weapons, warning that the world is dangerously close to a point where machines could autonomously target human beings.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres and International Committee of the Red Cross President Mirjana Spoljaric said governments must act urgently to prevent weapons from making life-and-death decisions without meaningful human control.
“We are now dangerously close to crossing a moral red line: the autonomous targeting of humans by machines,” the two leaders said in a joint appeal issued in Geneva on August 25. They called for negotiations to begin immediately on a legally binding international instrument establishing clear prohibitions and restrictions on autonomous weapon systems.
Risks are increasing
The UN and Red Cross said their fundamental concerns have remained unchanged since they first called for specific restrictions three years ago, but the risks have intensified as weapons technology has advanced rapidly.
Autonomous weapons are systems capable of selecting and engaging targets with limited or no direct human intervention. The growing use of artificial intelligence in military technology has raised concerns that machines could eventually determine independently who should be attacked.
The organizations stressed that autonomous weapons are not a distant possibility. A race toward greater autonomy in weapons systems is already underway, while international regulations have not kept pace with technological development.
Human judgment must remain central
A major concern is whether autonomous systems can reliably distinguish between combatants and civilians, particularly in complex battlefield conditions. Humanitarian organizations have also warned about the difficulty of determining responsibility when an autonomous system makes a fatal error. If a machine independently selects and attacks a person, questions could arise over who should be held legally responsible for the consequences.
At a Geneva briefing, the UN Office for Disarmament Affairs emphasized that some decisions should never be removed from human hands — particularly the decision over whether another human being lives or dies.
International talks have made limited progress
Governments have been discussing autonomous weapons under the United Nations framework since 2014. Important groundwork has been established through the UN General Assembly and the Group of Governmental Experts working under the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons.
However, negotiations have struggled to keep pace with rapidly advancing technology. The UN and Red Cross now want governments to move beyond discussions and establish concrete international rules. The renewed appeal comes ahead of further international discussions in Geneva and a major review conference scheduled for November.
Growing use of artificial intelligence in warfare
Concerns have increased as artificial intelligence-assisted and semi-autonomous weapons have become more prominent in modern conflicts, including in Ukraine, Sudan, Gaza, Iran and the Gulf region. Some fully autonomous defensive systems are already in military use, including systems designed to intercept incoming missiles. However, there is currently no confirmed evidence that fully autonomous weapons have been used to deliberately target humans without human involvement.
The UN and Red Cross argue that governments should establish safeguards before technology reaches a point where machines can independently make decisions over human life.
“This year must mark a turning point,” the two organizations said, urging governments to show political determination and move toward decisive international action.
