DEFENCE
New Zealand could take a global lead in controlling the development of ‘killer robots’ — so why isn’t it? According to the University of Canterbury’s Jeremy Moses, Geoffrey Ford and Sian Troath, the New Zealand Government appears hot and cold on the issue of autonomous weapons systems, but it could take a leadership role.
“New Zealand versus the killer robots” might sound like a science fiction B-movie, but that was essentially the focus of an event at parliament earlier this month. Hosted by Minister of Disarmament and Arms Control Phil Twyford, the “Dialogue on Autonomous Weapons Systems and Human Control” looked at how New Zealand might take more of an international lead in regulating these highly contentious new technologies. Twyford warned of the danger of warfare “delegated to machines”. He referred to a recent survey showing widespread public opposition to the deployment of autonomous weapons in war and strong support for government action to ban or limit their development and use. The prospect of New Zealand’s leadership has been warmly received by activists and campaigners involved in the “killer robots” debate. Human Rights Watch’s Mary Wareham has argued New Zealand leadership could act as “a total catalyst for action”, while the Campaign to Stop Killer Robots listed Twyford’s commitment as one of the “key actions and achievements” of its campaign to date. Yet New Zealand has not joined the 30 states that have formally called for a ban on autonomous weapons, and
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Twyford’s statements have tended to waver between bullish and reserved. During the event at parliament he acknowledged the clear ethical problems with autonomous weapons, but also the complexity of making policy. Sensitivity to military allies If the mood of the people and government of New Zealand is strongly behind regulation, what makes the issue so difficult? The short answer is politics and economics. A major obstacle for Twyford is allowing the New Zealand Defence Force to work with allies and partners. Both the US and Australia are heavily invested in pursuing cuttingedge military technologies, including robotics, artificial intelligence and autonomy. A key pillar of their strategy is building systems that allow more coordination on the battlefield. Leading a movement to have these systems regulated or banned could see New Zealand’s military shut out of joint exercises where such technologies are being trialled or used. Given the political pressure to take a stronger stand against China, it seems unlikely New Zealand’s Foreign Affairs and Trade or Defence ministries will want to risk further discord with key defence partners.
Protecting high-tech industry The second hurdle lies in the economic promise of technologies developed in New Zealand that could potentially be used in autonomous weapons programmes elsewhere. Many leading engineers and technologists have advocated for the regulation or banning of autonomous weapons, but others are attracted by the potential rewards of militaryrelated projects. These tensions have already surfaced in the debate about US military payloads being launched from New Zealand by US-owned aerospace company Rocket Lab. Autonomous weapons could well see similar questions raised about other technologies developed by New Zealand companies or researchers — most obviously in the fields of computer vision, robotics and swarm intelligence — that could be used in military systems. Regulating autonomous weapons without also inhibiting potentially lucrative AI and robotics research and development remains a challenge. Public opinion not enough The hope that regulation of autonomous weapons could represent another “antinuclear moment” in New Zealand’s disarmament and foreign policy history therefore seems premature.
Line of Defence
