Group of Governmental Experts on autonomous weapons digs into details of elements for a treaty, but needs to now advance to negotiations

11 September 2025

On 1–5 September 2025, delegations met in Geneva for another session of the Group of Governmental Experts (GGE) on Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems (LAWS). The GGE organised its discussion around a rolling text put forward by the Chair, Mr. Robert in den Bosch of the Netherlands. The text is divided into boxes, or sections, focusing on different elements of a potential instrument on LAWS. Amidst technical debates on the characterisation of LAWS and on the meaning of the term “context-appropriate human judgment and control,” the meeting had one of its highlights on Friday, when a group of 42 states delivered a statement affirming they are ready to “move ahead towards negotiations within the CCW on the basis of the rolling text." As said by Stop Killer Robots, this is a real step forward, and states should take this commitment seriously and to move to launch negotiations on a legally binding instrument on autonomous weapon systems as soon as possible.