Drone warfare and contemporary strategy making: Does the tail wag the dog?

Abstract

In the traditional Clausewitzian view, political goals and policies determine the character of war, and consequently policy forms the frame in which military strategy is shaped. This paper questions whether current experience has undermined the subjugation of military technique to military strategy, and thus to policy. The example of armed drones suggests that new technique can change the nature of war, including political and ethical views of war. An earlier example of new technique - nuclear weapons - brought similarly broad changes. Against one-way determinist views of the power of new technique, I argue that the interaction of armed drones with strategy, culture and politics has barely begun. © 2013 Taylor & Francis