The unregulated development and deployment of emerging technologies—referring to scientific and technical developments that, if applied in the military sphere, could have transformative effects on the future of warfare in unpredictable and potentially hazardous, destabilizing ways—could increase the risk of accidental and unintended conflict escalation. Whether manifested in new domains, new applications, or new military capabilities, these technologies can include hypersonic weapons, artificial intelligence-enabled capabilities, cyberspace operations, counterspace capabilities, and the like.
The Arms Control Association (ACA), in conjunction with other experts and organizations, has proposed various measures to reduce such risks, as laid out in issue briefs, reports, articles in Arms Control Today, and more. To receive updates on developments in this field, join today or sign up for our regular updates list.
CHARTS | REPORTS |
The effort still faces questions about funding and the risks of pursuing space-based defenses.
But the Trump vision faces legislative hurdles.
Trump Weighs Creating a ‘Space Force’
Putin’s decision to highlight his country’s nuclear strike capabilities is counterproductive and irresponsible. It can only worsen tensions between the world’s two largest nuclear actors, the United States and Russia.
The Defense Department in the fall conducted its latest test of a hypersonic missile, a new type of high-speed weapon that potentially holds great military promise but also great peril as the United States and other nations seeking to exploit the dizzying pace of technological advances.
On October 10, the international community commemorated the 50th anniversary of the entry into force of the Outer Space Treaty. This landmark instrument codified the foundation of outer space law and established the shared objective of maintaining space as a realm of peace.
August 2017
These systems are critical to defend our security. At the same time, these conduits for communication are vulnerable to state and nonstate actors.
A U.S. official in recent weeks has publicly said for the first time that the process for negotiating an international code of conduct that would establish rules for behavior in outer space has failed.