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Multistory residential building damaged by shrapnel from a downed kamikaze drone of the Russian army. On the night of May 8, the Russian army attacked the Kyiv region with Iranian-made shock drones "Shahed." The Ukrainian military destroyed 35 out of 35 Russian drones fired at Kyiv. In the city, due to falling debris, houses, road surfaces, and cars were damaged. Five people were injured.
(Photo by Sergei Chuzavkov/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Ground the Killer Drones and End the War Too
In reality, their use only prolongs war and piles up dead bodies.
May 10, 2023
As the Russian military intensifies its drone attacks on Kyiv and Ukraine’s troops increase usage of homemade drones to hit Russian targets, the region and the world acutely need a proposal calling on both sides to negotiate an end to the war. A first step could be for both sides to agree to stop using weaponized drones.
Current commentary discusses advantages—for one side or the other—of reliance on weaponized drones. But, the history of drone warfare in the Ukraine and in earlier wars, reveals two crucial points.
First, the notion that using killer drones will somehow provide the winning edge in combat is magical thinking. In reality, their use only prolongs war and piles up dead bodies. This has been true, in fact, wherever weaponized drones have been used, since the first modern-day drone attack was launched, unsuccessfully, by the United States on the first day of its Illegal invasion of Afghanistan, nearly 22 years ago.
The notion that using killer drones will somehow provide the winning edge in combat is magical thinking.
Second, the use of weaponized drones spreads war geographically and politically into areas in which generals, independent military leaders, and politicians would not dare to send ground forces. This, of course leads to extremely dangerous, illegal and irresponsible behavior, such as the failed bombing of the Kremlin on May 3, 2023.
As one reads the news of drone attacks, it is possible to think: “Well, today only X number of people died, I can accept the war grinding on”, unless one or more of those dead are people you love.
But the stakes of using drones to kill are extremely high, not only in terms of the consequences of attacking a target of huge political symbolic value, like the Kremlin.
On May 8, Russia announced that it was evacuating nearly 1,700 people, including 660 children, from the area surrounding the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power station, Europe’s largest nuclear plant, because the situation there is, according to the United Nations, “increasingly unpredictable and potentially dangerous.”
On April 5, Reuters reported that a Russian military officer said that a Ukrainian drone had crashed near the plant.
God willing, we have reached a moment in which Ukrainian and Russian leaders, and their wealthy supporters, will realize that weaponized drones are simply a manifestation of their fantastical thinking about achieving “victory” through technology.
The war will stop at some point, all sides will declare victory over a land sodden with the blood and tears of the politically powerless who were not drones, however much they were treated as such.
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Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
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Nick Mottern
Nick Mottern has worked as a reporter, researcher, writer, and political organizer over the last 50 years. He is co-coordinator of BanKillerDrones.org, a website devoted to education and organizing to stop drone warfare and surveillance.
As the Russian military intensifies its drone attacks on Kyiv and Ukraine’s troops increase usage of homemade drones to hit Russian targets, the region and the world acutely need a proposal calling on both sides to negotiate an end to the war. A first step could be for both sides to agree to stop using weaponized drones.
Current commentary discusses advantages—for one side or the other—of reliance on weaponized drones. But, the history of drone warfare in the Ukraine and in earlier wars, reveals two crucial points.
First, the notion that using killer drones will somehow provide the winning edge in combat is magical thinking. In reality, their use only prolongs war and piles up dead bodies. This has been true, in fact, wherever weaponized drones have been used, since the first modern-day drone attack was launched, unsuccessfully, by the United States on the first day of its Illegal invasion of Afghanistan, nearly 22 years ago.
The notion that using killer drones will somehow provide the winning edge in combat is magical thinking.
Second, the use of weaponized drones spreads war geographically and politically into areas in which generals, independent military leaders, and politicians would not dare to send ground forces. This, of course leads to extremely dangerous, illegal and irresponsible behavior, such as the failed bombing of the Kremlin on May 3, 2023.
As one reads the news of drone attacks, it is possible to think: “Well, today only X number of people died, I can accept the war grinding on”, unless one or more of those dead are people you love.
But the stakes of using drones to kill are extremely high, not only in terms of the consequences of attacking a target of huge political symbolic value, like the Kremlin.
On May 8, Russia announced that it was evacuating nearly 1,700 people, including 660 children, from the area surrounding the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power station, Europe’s largest nuclear plant, because the situation there is, according to the United Nations, “increasingly unpredictable and potentially dangerous.”
On April 5, Reuters reported that a Russian military officer said that a Ukrainian drone had crashed near the plant.
God willing, we have reached a moment in which Ukrainian and Russian leaders, and their wealthy supporters, will realize that weaponized drones are simply a manifestation of their fantastical thinking about achieving “victory” through technology.
The war will stop at some point, all sides will declare victory over a land sodden with the blood and tears of the politically powerless who were not drones, however much they were treated as such.
From Your Site Articles
Nick Mottern
Nick Mottern has worked as a reporter, researcher, writer, and political organizer over the last 50 years. He is co-coordinator of BanKillerDrones.org, a website devoted to education and organizing to stop drone warfare and surveillance.
As the Russian military intensifies its drone attacks on Kyiv and Ukraine’s troops increase usage of homemade drones to hit Russian targets, the region and the world acutely need a proposal calling on both sides to negotiate an end to the war. A first step could be for both sides to agree to stop using weaponized drones.
Current commentary discusses advantages—for one side or the other—of reliance on weaponized drones. But, the history of drone warfare in the Ukraine and in earlier wars, reveals two crucial points.
First, the notion that using killer drones will somehow provide the winning edge in combat is magical thinking. In reality, their use only prolongs war and piles up dead bodies. This has been true, in fact, wherever weaponized drones have been used, since the first modern-day drone attack was launched, unsuccessfully, by the United States on the first day of its Illegal invasion of Afghanistan, nearly 22 years ago.
The notion that using killer drones will somehow provide the winning edge in combat is magical thinking.
Second, the use of weaponized drones spreads war geographically and politically into areas in which generals, independent military leaders, and politicians would not dare to send ground forces. This, of course leads to extremely dangerous, illegal and irresponsible behavior, such as the failed bombing of the Kremlin on May 3, 2023.
As one reads the news of drone attacks, it is possible to think: “Well, today only X number of people died, I can accept the war grinding on”, unless one or more of those dead are people you love.
But the stakes of using drones to kill are extremely high, not only in terms of the consequences of attacking a target of huge political symbolic value, like the Kremlin.
On May 8, Russia announced that it was evacuating nearly 1,700 people, including 660 children, from the area surrounding the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power station, Europe’s largest nuclear plant, because the situation there is, according to the United Nations, “increasingly unpredictable and potentially dangerous.”
On April 5, Reuters reported that a Russian military officer said that a Ukrainian drone had crashed near the plant.
God willing, we have reached a moment in which Ukrainian and Russian leaders, and their wealthy supporters, will realize that weaponized drones are simply a manifestation of their fantastical thinking about achieving “victory” through technology.
The war will stop at some point, all sides will declare victory over a land sodden with the blood and tears of the politically powerless who were not drones, however much they were treated as such.
From Your Site Articles
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.