RAA Liaison Letter 2024 - 2025 Edition

RAA Liaison Letter – 2024 / 2025 Edition 92 maintain that meaningful human control over automated weapons is an essential control measure. 48 In any effort to introduce automated targeting, Australia will need the capacity to implement adequate control measures in circumstances in which the relevant technology is rapidly evolving and has not yet been fully tested and evaluated. The Risk of Overdependence . The use of 4IR technologies will only deliver a battlefield advantage if it is presided over by human adaptability and judgement. To guard against overdependence on 4IR technologies, the Army must focus on building effective human–machine teams, not machine-centric teams. 49 Indeed, the Army must consider 4IR technologies as augmentations to a predominantly human-centric kill chain. To do otherwise is to invite disaster for several reasons. For example, potential adversaries, like China, employ systems destruction warfare (SDW) techniques designed to target cyber and information systems, making automated software a likely target. 50 The Army must therefore retain the capacity to fall back on rudimentary methods of targeting. The Army must therefore retain the capacity to fall back on rudimentary methods of targeting. Guarding against overdependence is also critical from a moral standpoint. Only humans can steward the moral dimension that enshrines the ethical conduct of war. An algorithm cannot fully account for the ‘atmosphere of war’, defined by Clausewitz as being characterised by ‘danger, physical exertion, intelligence, and friction’. 51 Tim MacFarland, a leading academic on the ethics of autonomous weapons, rightly posits that ‘trust’ is an unfit substitute for ‘control’ in the application of autonomous weapons. 52 Conclusion The Army’s indirect fires and targeting capabilities stand to greatly benefit from 4IR technologies. As it readies for LSCO, autonomous weapons such as loitering drones can be an inexpensive supplement to the Army’s artillery deficiency. At the same time, the 1 TX Hammes, ‘Technological Change and the Fourth Industrial Revolution’, in George P Shultz et al. (eds), Beyond Disruption: Technology’s Challenge to Governance (Stanford: Hoover Institution, 2008), p. 40; Jean-Marc Rickli, ‘The Strategic Implications of Artificial Intelligence for integration of LAWs will prove an important firepower supplement that will allow the Army’s howitzers to concentrate on close combat, and its HIMARS to focus on strategic deterrence. Autonomous artillery is also more survivable than conventional systems when faced with counter-battery threats. In addition to hardware, 4IR technologies can greatly aid how the Army contributes to joint targeting. Augmented intelligence programs are transforming ground force situational awareness to significantly improve sensor fidelity and persistence. Automated kill-chain software can also expedite kill-chain responsiveness by accelerating processes such as PED and BDA. Finally, automated machine-learning programs can help the Army to better integrate its long- range precision fires into wider joint force kill chains. Integrating these advancements will, however, be challenged by the need for Australia to define an autonomous weapon strategy that aligns with its ethical standards. The Army will also be confronted by the need to enforce control measures that mitigate collateral damage risks. Finally, the Army will have to guard against overdependence on programs that are both vulnerable to SDW and not yet advanced enough to navigate the complexities of war. Regardless of the challenges ahead, the Australian Army’s ability to deliver ranged lethality in a future high- intensity conflict will be heavily influenced by how well it can achieve a measured but timely adoption of 4IR-enabled technologies. About the Author M AJOR J ASON K IRKHAM IS A B ATTERY C OMMANDER SERVING IN THE 4 TH R EGIMENT , R OYAL A USTRALIAN A RTILLERY . H IS MAJOR APPOINTMENTS INCLUDE THE ROLES OF I NSTRUCTOR - IN -G UNNERY AT THE S CHOOL OF A RTILLERY AND OF B RIGADE F IRE S UPPORT O FFICER , AND AS A TARGETING OFFICER IN THE HQ 1 ST D IVISION J OINT F IRES AND E FFECTS C OORDINATION C ENTRE . H E HOLDS A M ASTERS IN W AR S TUDIES THROUGH UNSW, AND ENJOYS PRACTISING , READING ABOUT AND WRITING ABOUT JOINT FIRES AND THE PROFESSION OF ARMS . International Security’, in Al Naqvi and Mark Munoz (eds), Handbook of AI and Robotic