Expert Meetings

2025 Geneva Expert Meeting

The Australian Government, with the support of the Asia-Pacific Institute for Law and Security, convened a third expert meeting on the legal review of autonomous weapon systems at the Palais des Nations in Geneva on 10–11 March 2025. The meeting was attended by 65 experts from 24 States (Australia, Austria, Canada, Egypt, Estonia, Finland, France, Italy, Israel, Nicaragua, Norway, Morocco, Pakistan, Poland, Portugal, Singapore, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, the United Kingdom and the United States), including personnel responsible for the conduct of legal reviews, as well as representatives from non-governmental organisations and academic institutions.

The aim of this meeting was to enhance State practice in legal reviews through the voluntary sharing of national practices. This was achieved by governmental experts providing presentations about their national practices as they pertain to the conduct of legal reviews, in particular the review of autonomous weapon systems, and autonomous or artificial intelligence-enabled capabilities more specifically. In addition to facilitating information sharing on national legal review practices, this meeting undertook to reflect on initiatives by the International Committee of the Red Cross, civil society and academia in support of national legal review practice.

2024 Sydney Expert Meeting

The Australian Defence Force convened a second expert meeting on the legal review of autonomous weapon systems at Victoria Barracks in Sydney on 16–18 April 2024. The meeting was attended by governmental and non-governmental experts from eight States (Australia, New Zealand, Norway, Singapore, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States).

This Meeting provided an opportunity to review the progress of international discourse about the regulation of AWS generally, as well as how legal reviews have featured in that debate. Governmental experts also provided updates and further information about their national practices as they pertain to the conduct of legal reviews, and the review of AWS and, autonomous or AI-enabled capabilities more generally. Separate to enhancing State information sharing in undertaking legal reviews of AWS, this Meeting undertook to again reflect upon the specific practices related to the conduct of legal reviews that may require adjustment to account for the challenges presented by AWS, and the introduction of artificial intelligence (AI) and autonomy into military capabilities, more generally.

In addition to the confidence building function undertaken in relation to the sharing of State-specific practices, this meeting worked to consolidate an international community of practice of like-minded States (and their representatives), and practitioners from industry and academia, who are building the corpus of knowledge about the methods by which the challenges presented by AWS in conducting a sufficiently robust legal reviews, can be overcome.

2023 Sydney Expert Meeting

The Australian Defence Force convened an expert meeting on the legal review of autonomous weapon systems (at Victoria Barracks in Sydney on 28–30 March 2023. The meeting was attended by 32 experts, including from six States (Australia, Brazil, New Zealand, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the United States), the International Committee of the Red Cross, non-governmental organisations, academia and the defence industry.

During the meeting, States’ experts gave an overview of current national practices relating to the tailoring of legal reviews for the purposes of reviewing AWS. The participants identified and discussed challenges in conducting legal reviews for AWS as compared to weapon systems without autonomous features. They also considered the possibility of creating a standing mechanism for the exchange of best practices in relation to legal reviews.

2016 Shrivenham Forum

The UK Development, Concepts and Doctrine Centre (DCDC) and the Stockton Center for the Study of International Law at the US Naval War College organised a second International Weapon Review Forum in October 2016 to address how lawyers charged with legal reviews might approach their responsibilities in the context of highly automated or autonomous technologies. The forum was attended by a broad mix of State representatives, including weapon reviewing lawyers, academics from science and the law, interested NGOs and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). It was conducted under the Chatham House Rule.

2015 Shrivenham Forum

The United Kingdom hosted a three-day Weapons Review Forum at its Developments, Concepts and Doctrine Centre in Shrivenham in 2015.