Theoretical, Legal and Ethical Impact of Robots on Warfare
Abstract
Ever since the first human tribe went to war with its neighboring human tribe, warfare has been a human experience. Authors through the ages have captured their observations of this phenomenon into a body of knowledge that we call the "Theory of War." As we enter the 21st Century, the advances in robotics are helping to move man further and further away from the battlefield. While some of these advances still have man in the loop, some of these systems are fully automatic and clearly break the paradigm of warfare being "composed of violence, hatred, and enmity." While the technological work on robotics is progressing at break-neck speed, the work being done on evaluating the impact of robots on the Theory of War, the Law of War, and the ethics of conducting war are not keeping pace. The author establishes a sense of urgency for the importance of looking at how to best use this technology. To do this, he first describes the expected employment of robots on the battlefield and the appropriate methods of controlling them. He then uses a historical example -- the fall of France in 1940 -- of how a larger military was overwhelmed by another adversary because they failed to fully synchronize technological change with strategic concepts. On 10 May 1940, Germany attacked France with a force that was outnumbered by the combined forces of Britain, France, Belgium, and Holland. The French had the best tanks in the world and the allies had an overall advantage in the number of divisions, tanks, aircraft, and artillery pieces. Yet in 6 short weeks, Germany defeated Holland, Belgium, and France and drove the British force into the sea at Dunkirk. The Germans suffered 150,000 casualties while the allies suffered over 2.2 million. Finally, the author evaluates the impact of robots on the Theory of War and the Law of War and looks at some legal and ethical dilemmas that robots will create if they are employed in warfare.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Mar 30, 2007
- Accession Number
- ADA469591
Entities
People
- Thomas H. Cowan Jr.
Organizations
- United States Army War College