Paddy Ashdown – or Baron Ashdown of Norton-sub-Hamdon – to give him his proper title, former Royal Marine, intelligence service officer and leader of the Liberal Democrats has an opinion piece in the Times entitled ‘If you’re opposed to drones, then think… Read More ›
There have been a number of articles published recently on the morality of drone wars, many of them suggesting that those of us with grave concerns about the growing use of drones have either got it wrong, are confused, or… Read More ›
A number of announcements made in the past two weeks to coincide with the Farnborough airshow show the quickening pace of developments around the use of drones and unmanned systems. Perhaps the most significant was the UK MoD’s announcement that… Read More ›
Over the past week there has been what looks like the beginning of a concerted effort by advocates of drones to put their case to the public. On Monday, Obama’s chief counter-terrorism adviser, John Brennan gave a widely reported speech… Read More ›
Anyone with even a passing interest in the military soon discovers the peculiar phenomenon of ‘military speak’, in which a spade can never quite be called a spade. Bombs and bullets are called ’ordnance consumables’, a missile strike or bombing raid… Read More ›
The main international agreement controlling the proliferation of drones, the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), is coming under increasing pressure from drone manufacturers who see it as out-dated and ‘a drag’ on the development of their industry. The Missile Technology… Read More ›
On 7 September the awkwardly named ASTRAEA (Autonomous Systems Technology Related Airborne Evaluation & Assessment) programme held its annual conference at the Royal Aeronautical Society in central London. The aim of the ASTRAEA programme is “to enable the use of drones… Read More ›
The Bureau of Investigative Journalism (TBIJ) have continued their excellent work exposing US drone strikes in Pakistan by publishing extensive new research. According to their research, more than 160 children are among at least 2,292 people reported killed in US… Read More ›
An internal briefing on British drones by the leading RAF staff officer working on the controversial weapon system stresses the need for the MoD to develop a “communication strategy” to win over public opinion in support of armed drones. As part… Read More ›
Earlier this month Foreign Policy magazine website ran an article called ‘Don’t Fear the Reaper’ arguing that those opposing drones are “misleading the public” and “distracting attention away from some more important and bigger issues.” Strong accusations indeed. While far from… Read More ›
The latest issue of Chatham House magazine The World Today, has a defence of the use of armed drones entitled ‘Drone Attacks: The ‘Secret’ Matrix’ by Amitai Etzioni, Professor of International Relations at The George Washington University. Etzionoi graciously acknowledges that there is… Read More ›
