Changing the rules of war: the controversies surrounding the United States’ expanded use of drones

Abstract

The Obama administration has an opportunity, and some would say an obligation, to create a doctrine that sets guidelines for the development and deployment of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), also known as drones. There are a number of debates surrounding the use of drones, the most contentious of which have been as to whether governments have legal authorization to do so, and of how combatant status is defined under current international law. In Obama’s first term, his administration worked to rollback the world’s arsenal of nuclear weapons. His efforts and vision of a world without nuclear weapons was one of the reasons why President Obama was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize—inclusive, of course, of his effort to strengthen international diplomacy. Yet, during this same period, his administration has developed and utilized revolutionary military technologies that may well become signature weapons of the 21st century. Since 9/11, there has been an alarming increase in the use of drones.