Moji Motions

"Lethal autonomous weapons (LAWs) are a type of autonomous military system that can independently search for and attack targets without direct human intervention based on programmed constraints and descriptions."

The letters of last resort contain orders on what action to take if an enemy nuclear strike has both destroyed the government and has also killed or otherwise incapacitated both the prime minister and their designated "second person" of responsibility, typically a high-ranking member of the cabinet such as the deputy prime minister or the first secretary of state. If the orders are carried out, the action taken could be the last official act of the government. For the sake of this debate, we shall assume that the two options are to retaliate with nuclear weapons, or to not retaliate. We are explicitly not considering options that foist off decision-making to another actor (like the submarine commander, or another nation).