Category: Primer

RAIN+ Ethics Primer #5 About the primer Download as PDF

Autonomous weapon systems are systems that can search, identify, track and engage targets independently
without the need for direct human control. They have sparked fierce debate about the
potential operational, ethical and legal issues that may arise with their use. Fully autonomous weapon
systems do not yet exist, but their potential future use in armed conflicts raises a number of legal
questions that will be addressed in this primer.

The ethical debate on autonomous weapon systems is concentrated on the potential risks and benefits of weapon systems capable of finding, tracing and engaging targets independent of human control. While such systems do not yet exist, there are systems currently in operation and development that possess varying degrees of autonomy. That is why this primer not only discusses the ethical questions related to the potential, future use of autonomous weapon systems but also the questions that can be raised about existing systems with autonomous capabilities.

The ethical debate on autonomous weapon systems is concentrated on the potential risks and benefits of weapon systems capable of finding, tracing and engaging targets independent of human control. While such systems do not yet exist, there are systems currently in operation and development that possess varying degrees of autonomy. That is why this primer not only discusses the ethical questions related to the potential, future use of autonomous weapon systems but also the questions that can be raised about existing systems with autonomous capabilities.