Autonomous Weapons in the Light of Care Ethics

Abstract

The development of autonomous weapons systems is ongoing, and in the future, there may be a serious risk of deployment of these weapons without human control. The world is facing a possible new way of warfare separated from human intervention. This raises the urgency for conceptual, moral thinking on this matter. In this essay, care ethics provides constitutional elements to this moral reflection. According to care ethics, humans are intertwined, dependent on each other, and always related. In these relations, care is the central notion. The overarching goal of providing care is promoting and sustaining human dignity. The violation of this human dignity is the main argument to oppose the deployment of fully autonomous weapons.

DISCLOSURE STATEMENT

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Anne Pier Schelte Van Der Meulen

Anne Pier Schelte van der Meulen, Protestant Chaplaincy in the Dutch Armed Forces, The Hague, The Netherlands; Protestant Church in the Netherlands, Utrecht, The Netherlands. E-mail: [email protected]