AI and Armed Conflicts

Katerina Yordanova
2
Outline

1. International Humanitarian Law

2. Lethal Autonomous Weapon Systems (LAWS)
3. LAWS and International Humanitarian Law
4. Other utilizations of AI systems on the battlefield
5. Dual-use technologies

3
What is Humanitarian Law?

“International humanitarian law is part of the body of

international law that governs relations between states. It
aims to protect persons who are not or are no longer
taking part in hostilities, the sick and wounded, prisoners
and civilians, and to define the rights and obligations of
the parties to a conflict in the conduct of hostilities.”
International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), War and International Humanitarian Law (29 October 2010)

4
 Brief introduction
to humanitarian
law

“When the sun came up on the

twenty-fifth, it disclosed the most
dreadful sights imaginable. Bodies of
men and horses covered the
battlefield; corpses were strewn over
roads, ditches, ravines, thickets and
fields; the approaches of Solferino
were literally thick with dead.”

5
Brief introduction to humanitarian law
• The International Committee of the Red Cross (1863)
• Geneva Convention for the Amelioration of the Conditions of the Wounded in Armies
in the Field (1864)
• St Petersburg Declaration (1868)
• Hague Conventions on the land warfare (1899 and 1907)
• First World War
• Second World War
• Time to legislate! – Genocide Convention, The 4 Geneva Conventions from 1949 and
Additional Protocols (1977)
• Arms Control Treaties: Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (1968),
BWC (1972), CCW (1980), The Chemical Weapons Convention (1993), Treaty on the
Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (2017)

6
Core Principles of IHL
• Distinction between civilians and combatants
• Prohibition to attack those hors de combat
• Prohibition to inflict unnecessary suffering
• Principle of military necessity
• Principle of proportionality
• Principle of humanity

7
Lethal Autonomous Weapon Systems (LAWS)

• What does ‘autonomous mean’?

In EU context: ‘lethal autonomous weapon systems’ refers to weapon systems

without meaningful human control over the critical functions of selecting and
attacking individual targets;
While non-autonomous systems such as automated, remotely operated and
tele-operated systems should not be considered as lethal autonomous weapons
systems

8
 What is
autonomy?
(comparative
example with
autonomous
vehicles)

9
Different categories of Unmanned Weaponry Systems

• Remotely operated systems – ‘human in the loop’ directed by human

operators remotely (close distance or via satellite)

• Automated systems - ‘human-supervised autonomous systems’ - once

deployed, they can operate without human input – operation depending
on pre-programmed information

• Autonomous systems – ‘human out of the loop’ – no human input

immediately prior to or during deployment

10
Article 36 of Additional Protocol I

In the study, development, acquisition or adoption of a new weapon, means or

method of warfare, a High Contracting Party is under an obligation to determine
whether its employment would, in some or all circumstances, be prohibited by
this Protocol or by any other rule of international law applicable to the High
Contracting Party.

11
Article 48 of Additional Protocol I

In order to ensure respect for and protection of the civilian population and
civilian objects, the Parties to the conflict shall at all times distinguish between
the civilian population and combatants and between civilian objects and military
objectives and accordingly shall direct their operations only against military
objectives.

12
Article 51of Additional Protocol I

5. Among others, the following types of attacks are to be considered as

indiscriminate:
…
(b) an attack which may be expected to cause incidental loss of civilian life,
injury to civilians, damage to civilian objects, or a combination thereof, which
would be excessive in relation to the concrete and direct military advantage
anticipated.

13
Article 57, Additional Protocol 1
1. In the conduct of military operations, constant care shall be taken to spare the civilian population,
civilians and civilian objects
2. With respect to attacks, the following precautions shall be taken:
(a) those who plan or decide upon an attack shall:
(i) do everything feasible to verify that the objectives to be attacked are neither civilians nor civilian
objects and are not subject to special protection but are military objectives within the meaning of
paragraph 2 of Article 52 and that it is not prohibited by the provisions of this Protocol to attack them;
(ii) take all feasible precautions in the choice of means and methods of attack with a view to
avoiding, and in any event to minimizing, incidental loss of civilian life, injury to civilians and damage
to civilian objects;
(iii) refrain from deciding to launch any attack which may be expected to cause incidental loss of
civilian life, injury to civilians, damage to civilian objects, or a combination thereof, which would be
excessive in relation to the concrete and direct military advantage anticipated;

14
 Convention on Certain Conventional
Weapons: an appropriate framework
and platform for consensus on dealing
Final report of with the issue of emerging technologies
in the area of lethal autonomous
the 2017 weapons systems
meeting of
the GGE on International humanitarian law
LAWS (1) continues to apply fully to all weapons
systems, including the potential
development and use of lethal
autonomous weapons systems
 Dual nature: the Group’s efforts should not
hamper progress in or access to civilian
research and development and use of these
technologies

Final report of
the 2017 Pace of development and uncertainty
regarding the emergence of increased
meeting of autonomy: need to keep potential military
applications of related technologies under
the GGE on review

LAWS (2)
Need of research on human-machine
interaction in the area of lethal autonomous
weapons systems
 “International law, in
particular the United
Nations Charter and
International
Humanitarian Law as well
Guiding as relevant ethical
perspectives, should guide
Principles the continued work of the
GGE”
(2019)
Principle 1: • International humanitarian law continues to
Compliance apply fully to all weapons systems, including
the potential development and use of lethal
with autonomous weapons systems
• Consideration should be given to the use of
international emerging technologies in the area of lethal
autonomous weapons systems in upholding
humanitarian compliance with IHL and other applicable
law international legal obligations
Principle 2: Human responsibility for decisions on the use of
weapons systems must be retained since
Human accountability cannot be transferred to
machines. This should be considered across the
responsibility entire life cycle of the weapons system
 • Human-machine interaction may take various forms and
Principle 3: be implemented at various stages of the life cycle of a
weapon
• It should ensure that the potential use of weapons
Human- systems based on emerging technologies in the area of
lethal autonomous weapons systems is in compliance
machine with applicable international law, in particular IHL
• In determining the quality and extent of human-machine

interaction interaction, a range of factors should be considered

including the operational context, and the characteristics
and capabilities of the weapons system as a whole
 Accountability for developing, deploying and
using any emerging weapons system in the
Principle 4: framework of the CCW must be ensured in
accordance with applicable international law,
Accountability including through the operation of such systems
within a responsible chain of human command
and control
Principle 5: In accordance with States’ obligations under
international law, in the study, development,
Prohibited acquisition, or adoption of a new weapon,
means or method of warfare, determination
methods and must be made whether its employment would, in
some or all circumstances, be prohibited by
weapons international law
 • When developing or acquiring new weapons
systems based on emerging technologies in the
area of lethal autonomous weapons systems,
physical security, appropriate non-physical
Principle 6: safeguards (including cyber-security against
hacking or data spoofing), the risk of acquisition
Risk by terrorist groups and the risk of proliferation
should be considered

management • Risk assessments and mitigation measures

should be part of the design, development,
testing and deployment cycle of emerging
technologies in any weapons systems
 In crafting potential policy measures, emerging
Principle 7: No technologies in the area of lethal autonomous
anthropomorphism weapons systems should not be
anthropomorphized
Principle 8:
Impact on Discussions and any potential policy measures
taken within the context of the CCW should not
hamper progress in or access to peaceful uses of
peaceful uses intelligent autonomous technologies

of AI
Principle 9: CCW offers an appropriate framework for
Balance between dealing with the issue of emerging technologies
in the area of lethal autonomous weapons
military necessity systems within the context of the objectives and
purposes of the Convention, which seeks to
and humanitarian strike a balance between military necessity and
humanitarian considerations
considerations
28
29
Some local initiatives
• European Parliament resolution of 12 September 2018 on autonomous weapon
systems (2018/2752(RSP))
• Regulation (EU) 2021/697 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April
2021 establishing the European Defence Fund and repealing Regulation (EU)
2018/1092
• European Parliament recommendation of 9 June 2021 to the Council on the 75th and
76th sessions of the United Nations General Assembly
• Council of Europe

30
Is AI really that bad?

31
• What is a dual-use item?

• ‘dual-use items’ means items, including

software and technology, which can be
used for both civil and military
purposes, and includes items which can
be used for the design, development,
production or use of nuclear, chemical or
biological weapons or their means of
delivery, including all items which can be
used for both non-explosive uses and
assisting in any way in the manufacture of
nuclear weapons or other nuclear
explosive devices;

32
Topic for discussion

Shall we prohibit LAWS or just regulate

them?

What about the use of AI for other military

purposes? How do we balance human
rights?
33
Thank you!

Let’s stay in touch

@katevyordanova

[email protected]