State Control Over the Use of Autonomous Weapon Systems: Risk Management and State Responsibility

Abstract

Starting from the premise that meaningful human control always needs to be ensured when deploying autonomous weapons systems and that anti-personnel autonomous weapons systems should be banned altogether, this contribution considers to what extent State control over the development and any later use of autonomous weapon systems is required, should these weapon systems and weapons nevertheless be developed. First, the questions that risk management and State responsibility pose in this regard are analysed, and what preventative steps may be taken. Second, attribution and State responsibility for the use of autonomous weapons are considered.