Europe
The United Nations (UN) logo is seen on a gate outside the UN headquarters ahead of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York on September 21, 2025. (AFP/Kena Betancur)
The head of the Red Cross and the United Nations on Tuesday warned that autonomous weapons that can kill people without human involvement could soon be used in conflicts and called for urgent negotiations to restrict their use."We are now dangerously close to crossing a moral red line: the autonomous targeting of humans by machines," said United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and President of the International Committee of the Red Cross Mirjana Spoljaric in a joint statement.
"Negotiations must begin now to urgently adopt a legally binding instrument to regulate autonomous weapon systems with clear prohibitions and restrictions," they said.
States are meeting in Geneva on potential new rules next week amid mounting concerns over the role of AI-assisted semi-autonomous weapons that have been used in conflicts in Ukraine, Sudan, Gaza, and in Iran and the Gulf.
