UN chief and Red Cross president urge swift limits on killer robots

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and International Committee of the Red Cross President Mirjana Spoljaric issued a joint statement warning that autonomous weapons capable of killing without human oversight are dangerously close to being fielded in armed conflicts. They called for urgent negotiations to adopt a binding international instrument that would clearly prohibit or limit such systems. The plea arrives amid growing alarm over AI-driven semi-autonomous weapons used in recent wars in Ukraine, Sudan, Gaza, Iran and the Gulf, while fully autonomous platforms already operate on some warships for missile defense, though not yet against people.

Rights advocates contend that AI-based weapons are hard to predict, risk lethal errors such as failing to recognize surrendering combatants, and would hinder accountability for war crimes. The statement urges states to move beyond gradual discussions toward decisive action, with a major Geneva conference planned for November to launch the talks. The call reflects ongoing diplomatic efforts that began in 2014 but have lagged behind rapid technological advances.