Stop Killer Robots Youth Network Calls for Human Control over Artificial Intelligence in the Military Domain during UN Informal Exchanges

Held from 15 to 17 June, the informal exchanges are mechanisms of the United Nations General Assembly designed to promote meetings in which, in light of the observations and conclusions presented in the Secretary-General’s report to the General Assembly, States provide their additional views and perspectives, focusing during this period on the issue of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and militarization.

Accordingly, the General Assembly convened these exchanges pursuant to Resolution 80/58 (2025), entitled Artificial intelligence in the military domain and its implications for international peace and security. With the aim of identifying both the opportunities and challenges surrounding this issue, the United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs (UNODA) will prepare a summary of the informal exchanges, which were organized by UN offices, State representatives, and civil society organizations such as the International Humanitarian Law and Youth Initiative (IHLYI), Stop Killer Robots, and the International Committee of the Red Cross.

The discussions addressed perspectives for the future and emerging technologies, AI in military decision-making, disarmament and human rights, AI governance, and even the relationship between this technology and nuclear weapons.

In this context, the Stop Killer Robots Youth Network released a statement in response to the discussions held during the General Assembly’s informal exchanges, emphasizing the urgency of maintaining human control as a fundamental principle governing military operations and the development and modernization of weapons.

Condemning the integration of Artificial Intelligence into military systems under the argument of technological advancement, the coalition highlights that such technologies

"[...] might offer operational advantages, but they also introduce serious issues: faster escalation, lowered thresholds for the use of force, opaque decision-making, bias, and the delegation of life-and-death decisions to machines. These risks are already shaping military doctrine, procurement, and political expectations, while the impacts of these ungoverned technologies are laid bare in current conflicts, with particularly egregious impacts on civilians, leading to their digital dehumanisation"

Furthermore, the statement underscores the need for concrete and transparent AI governance regarding the use of these technologies in the military domain, ensuring the establishment of clear limits and auditable testing procedures. Moreover, the document also urges States to

"[...] advance negotiations toward a legally binding instrument on autonomous weapons systems that will comprehensively respond to the ethical and legal issues related to these systems, prohibiting systems that operate without meaningful human control and systems that target humans."

Co-authored by Dhesarme President Hevelyn Ghizzi and other young activists committed to the regulation and prohibition of technologies that grant autonomy to military systems, the statement symbolizes the efforts of organized civil society, particularly young people, to advocate for a legal instrument that seriously addresses Artificial Intelligence and acknowledges the gravity of its impact on contemporary armed conflicts. It therefore recognizes the important role that meetings such as the informal exchanges play in shaping the future of new generations, their security, and their rights.

Therefore, in light of the need for the active participation of civil society, affected communities, and other groups in discussions on security and emerging technologies, the statement emphasizes that “Young people are not only future stakeholders”; they are “[…] present political actors in shaping global governance.”

Read the full statement!

01/07/2026 BRT

References

UNITED NATIONS ORGANIZATION. Informal exchanges on artificial intelligence in the military domain and its implications for international peace and security. Geneva: United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs, 2026. Available at: https://meetings.unoda.org/informal-exchanges-on-artificial-intelligence-in-the-military-domain-2026. Accessed on: 22 June 2026.

STOP KILLER ROBOTS YOUTH NETWORK. Statement to informal exchanges on AI in the military domain, Geneva, June 2026. Geneva, 2026. Available at: https://unodaweb-meetings.unoda.org/public/2026-06/Stop%20Killer%20Robots%20Youth%20Network_Statement%20to%20informal%20exchanges%20on%20AI%20MD_Geneva_June%202026.pdf. Accessed on: 22 June 2026.