By akademiotoelektronik, 25/09/2022

In Geneva, the failure of discussions between UN States to regulate "killers" robots "

Benjamin Logerot December 20, 2021 at 1:0519 p.m.

Last Friday, 125 states and many non -governmental organizations met at a UN summit in Geneva.The goal was to make decisions on the use of "killer robots", so -called autonomous drones, after eight years of discussion.Alas, the summit ended in a bitter failure.

There was little hope of changing the world's largest military states on the use and development of combat drones, whether autonomous or led by humans.

Eight years of discussion for nothing

In March 2021, the United Nations published a report showing 100 % autonomous drone strikes in Libya.A first in history that has reacted a number of Member States.If the veracity of the term "100% autonomous" is still to be confirmed, it was nonetheless urgent for states to meet and discuss the problems posed by the use of combat drones, whether they are autonomousor not.

Last Friday therefore, the 125 international actors met, accompanied by a few large NGOs, in an attempt to legislate internationally on the use of these "killer robots".No agreement has been reached: the weight of the great military powers (Israel, India, the United States or Russia), fiercely opposed to any ban, was too strong.

Nothing has yet been engraved in marble and new negotiation tests will be able to see the light of day.This UN summit was also mainly shot on the issue of autonomous robots used for military strikes, using advanced technologies such as AI or facial recognition.According to NGOs and opponent states, the use of this kind of drones would increase risks for civilians, would pose problems of responsibility (if no one is in control, which can blame?) And would increase the risk ofclimbing of conflict.

Broader discussions

For eight years, discussions within the UN concerned more broadly the use of combat drones, managed by humans or not.It is clear that in all cases, collateral damage is not avoided and that, as a result, drones only serve to protect soldiers from the attacking country but not civilians from affected countries.

The New York Times published an overwhelming investigation last Saturday pointing to the dysfunctions of the American pentagon on the use of drones.According to the survey, since 2014, the United States has carried out some 50,000 drone strikes in Afghanistan, Syria and Iraq, which caused the death of at least 1427 civilians.Whether a drone is autonomous or not, the error is always present.

Opponents of their use were obviously disappointed with the results of the discussions and António Guterres, the United Nations Secretary General, called on countries to set up an ambitious plan to develop new rules.

Source : Daily Sabah, The New York Times