The United Nations and the International Red Cross are urging countries to adopt bans and restrictions on autonomous weapons systems, often called killer robots
GENEVA — The United Nations and the International Committee of the Red Cross on Tuesday ratcheted up a joint call for countries to adopt bans and restrictions on use of autonomous weapons systems — often known as killer robots — warning that “the risks have intensified.”
Building on an initial appeal three years ago and international talks on the issue for years, the appeal stops short of calling for a blanket ban but notes that such weapons systems are being developed, though the U.N. and Red Cross haven’t confirmed use on the battlefield. But civilians need to be protected for when that day may come.
“We are now dangerously close to crossing a moral red line: The autonomous targeting of humans by machines,” said U.N. Geneva spokesperson Alessandra Vellucci, reading a joint statement by U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres and ICRC President Mirjana Spoljaric.
UN chief, Red Cross renew call for rules on lethal autonomous weapons
https://news.un.org/en/story/2026/08/1168196
That ship has long sailed
'Once you have started a process where a weapon becomes a killer robot, it's very difficult to break the chain, to break into it.'
Defence Editor at the Evening Standard Robert Fox, discusses the threat of using robots in warfare.
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The United Nations and Red Cross have warned that the world is "dangerously close" to a future where autonomous weapons – so-called "killer robots" – could target humans, and issued an urgent appeal for international regulations. https://t.co/vK39a4xXm6 pic.twitter.com/LkcVvNr4EQ
— Olivier Salgado (@olivier_salgado) August 25, 2026
h/t A Deplorable Neanderthal