• The Korean Journal of Air & Space Law and Policy
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• v.35 no.1
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• pp.127-152
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• 2020

Despite growing international cooperation for maintenance of international peace and security, wars continue to occur due to conflicted state interests. Continuing conflicts has advanced development of various weapon systems such as global integrated intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance. However, with a big increase in the number of civilian casualties caused by the weapon systems development, the international community has also advanced diplomatic efforts to minimize deaths of civilian and military personnel. Therefore, it is essential to observe the principle of discrimination between combatants and non-combatants when operating unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), better known as drones. Drones have become more capable of distinguishing combatants from non-combatants due to its high-tech prowess. In the operation of drones, any parties involved in combat or the war are responsible for mounting civilian casualties. In addition, it should comply with the principle of proportionality that calls for a balance between results of such action and expected military advantage anticipated from the attack. The rule of proportionality prohibits use of military force which may be expected to cause excessive civilian harm. Drones have been able to track and monitor targets for hours and select the accurate locations of the targets. The aim is to reduce civilian losses and damage to a minimum. Drones meet the standards of Article 51.4 of the Additional Protocol.