A/RES/78/241 GA

United Nations A/RES/78/241 General Assembly Distr.: General 28 December 2023 23-26252 (E) 100124 *2326252* Seventy-eighth session Agenda item 99 General and complete disarmament Resolution adopted by the General Assembly on 22 December 2023 [on the report of the First Committee (A/78/409, para. 89)] 78/241. Lethal autonomous weapons systems The General Assembly, Affirming that international law, in particular the Charter of the United Nations, international humanitarian law and international human rights law, applies to autonomous weapons systems, Recognizing the rapid development of new and emerging technologies, and recognizing further that they hold great promise for the advancement of human welfare and could, inter alia, help to better protect civilians in conflict in certain circumstances, Mindful of the serious challenges and concerns that new technological applications in the military domain, including those related to artificial intelligence and autonomy in weapons systems, also raise from humanitarian, legal, security, technological and ethical perspectives, Concerned about the possible negative consequences and impact of autonomous weapon systems on global security and regional and international stability, including the risk of an emerging arms race, lowering the threshold for conflict and proliferation, including to non-State actors, Welcoming the interest and sustained efforts on these issues, in particular through the ongoing and valuable work of the Group of Governmental Experts on Emerging Technologies in the Area of Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems, established under the Convention on Prohibitions or Restrictions on the Use of Certain Conventional Weapons Which May Be Deemed to Be Excessively Injurious or to Have Indiscriminate Effects, 1 and in this regard underlining the significant progress made in these discussions as well as the various proposals presented, __________________ 1 United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 1342, No. 22495. A/RES/78/241 Lethal autonomous weapons systems 23-26252 2/2 Noting the adoption by consensus of Human Rights Council resolution 51/22 of 7 October 2022 on human rights implications of new and emerging technologies in the military domain,2 Acknowledging the important contribution of international and regional conferences and initiatives such as the summit hosted by the Kingdom of the Netherlands and co-organized by the Republic of Korea on 15 and 16 February 2023, the regional conference hosted by Costa Rica on 23 and 24 February 2023, the conference hosted by Luxembourg on 25 and 26 April 2023, as well as the regional conference hosted by Trinidad and Tobago on 5 and 6 September 2023, Recognizing the valuable contributions made by United Nations entities and international and regional organizations, the International Committee of the Red Cross, civil society organizations, academia, industry and other stakeholders in enriching international discussions on autonomous weapons systems, encompassing legal, ethical, human rights, societal and technological dimensions, Recognizing the efforts of the Secretary-General within the new agenda for peace initiative to address the issue of autonomous weapons systems, 1. Stresses the urgent need for the international community to address the challenges and concerns raised by autonomous weapons systems, in particular through the Group of Governmental Experts on Emerging Technologies in the Area of Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems, and to continue to further its understanding of the issues involved; 2. Requests the Secretary-General to seek the views of Member States and observer States on lethal autonomous weapons systems, inter alia, on ways to address the related challenges and concerns they raise from humanitarian, legal, security, technological and ethical perspectives and on the role of humans in the use of force, and to submit a substantive report reflecting the full range of views received with an annex containing these views, to the General Assembly at its seventy-ninth session for further discussion by Member States; 3. Also requests the Secretary-General to invite the views of international and regional organizations, the International Committee of the Red Cross, civil society, the scientific community and industry to include these views in the original language received in the annex of the aforementioned report; 4. Decides to include in the provisional agenda of its seventy-ninth session the item entitled “Lethal autonomous weapons systems”. 50th (resumed) plenary meeting 22 December 2023 __________________ 2 See Official Records of the General Assembly, Seventy-seventh Session, Supplement No. 53A (A/77/53/Add.1), chap. III, sect. A.

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