In order to ensure that the military use of emerging technologies in the area of LAWS is in compliance with international legal obligations, particularly [IHL], we must carefully study the use in the entire life cycle of weapons systems. In particular, the hardware and software within the design, development, and testing stages, should be rigorously tested, evaluated, and verified under various pragmatic situations, and the possible risk of them should be carefully explored, together with corresponding mitigation measures. It is important to improve the predictability and reliability of such weapons systems through the process I have just mentioned.
Statement by Japan on agenda item 5(d) (4 August 2021)
