Non-Lethal Weapons in Conventional Combat Operations: Leveraging Capabilities or Violating the Rules of War?

Abstract

NLW technologies hold great promise for revolutionizing conventional combat operations. Faced with scenarios involving the intermingling of the levels of war and problems associated with identifying combatants and non-combatants, non-lethal technologies could provide the operational commander with a full range of weaponry and more balanced options for applying force. While leaps in non-lethal technology provided expanded opportunity for weapons development, this same factor caused weaponization to supercede policy development and implementation. A political environment bounded by the Rules of War and numerous international treaties and Conventions places further development at risk to legal, moral, and ethical roadblocks. This situation complicates all aspects of non-lethal technology: R & D, policy formulation, operational concepts development, and procurement. Although not all the issues have immediate solutions, there are steps that policy makers can take in the areas of international law, policy, and NLW development to expedite their acceptance.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
May 17, 1999
Accession Number
ADA370617

Entities

People

  • W. M. Callihan

Organizations

  • Naval War College

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Counter WMD
  • Energy and Power Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Agreements
  • Arms Control
  • Arms Control Treaties
  • Chemical Weapons
  • Combat Operations
  • Environment
  • International Law
  • Military Operations
  • National Security
  • Nonlethal Weapons
  • Treaties
  • United States
  • Urban Areas
  • War Colleges
  • Warfare
  • Weapons Effects
  • Weapons Of Mass Destruction

Fields of Study

  • Political science

Readers

  • Military History / Militaries and War Studies
  • Strategic Security Studies
  • Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) Autonomous Capabilities and Mission Reconnaissance.