The evolution of targeted killing practices: Autonomous weapons, future conflict, and the international order
Abstract
This article examines the potential use of autonomous aerial weapons for targeted killing purposes and, in doing so, looks beyond the now-familiar “global war on terror.” We argue that the combination of novel capabilities with the pre-existing military-theoretical frameworks of advanced Western states, within which autonomous weapons will be embedded, may be conducive to an expansion of targeted killings to scenarios other than military counter-terrorism. The confluence of autonomous weapons and targeted killing practices may therefore lead to a further weakening of long-standing norms regulating the use of force, including in interstate scenarios. We also find that international regulation is unlikely to forestall this outcome, and that political-military insistence on centralized operational control may mitigate—but not negate—the disruptive potential of these developments. As a result, the possible consequences for the international order of an evolution of targeted killing practices along these lines should not be underestimated.
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Increased investments in uninhabited ground vehicles like the Russian Platform-M and AWS like the MQ-9 Reaper resulted from these advancements.
“Increased investments in uninhabited ground vehicles (UGV) like the Russian Platform-M and AWS like the MQ-9 Reaper (Figure 11(a)) resulted from these advancements.”
From Artificial Intelligence in the Military: An Overview of the Capabilities, Applications, and Challenges (2023) · cites this paper as [71]
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- Authors
- Haas, M. C., & Fischer, S.-C.
- Affiliations
- ETH Zurich (CH)
- Corresponding author
- Haas, Michael Carl
- Venue
- Contemporary Security Policy
- Publisher
- Informa UK Limited
- Published
- 2017-05-04
- Volume
- 38
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 281-306
- ISSN
- 1352-3260 (ISSN-L)
- 1743-8764
- OpenAlex
- W2742653893
- Cited by
- 37
- References
- 58
- Citations by year
- 2026: 3 · 2025: 4 · 2024: 5 · 2023: 4 · 2022: 3 · 2021: 5 · 2020: 6 · 2019: 3 · 2018: 1 · 2017: 3
- FWCI
- 2.23
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Contemporary Security Policy (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Engineering › Control and Systems Engineering › Military Strategy and Technology
- Social Sciences › Political Science and International Relations › International Law and Human Rights
- Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › Philosophy › War, Ethics, and Justification
- Keywords
- autonomous weapons, targeted killing, international order, counterterrorism, future of warfare, military theory, interstate conflict
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