This volume discusses the rise of drone technology in modern warfare, focusing on its profound implications for global military competition, arms control, and international security. Situated within the broader context of contemporary international relations, where emerging military technologies are increasingly central to the formulation of national security strategies, this book explores not only the technological advancements that enable drone warfare, but also the strategic, political, and ethical dilemmas that arise from their widespread use.

The scope of the book spans several key areas: the rapid development of drones as tools of military power, the implications for global arms races, the challenges they present to arms control frameworks, and the evolving nature of international security in an age of autonomous and semi-autonomous weapons systems. Through an interdisciplinary lens, this book draws on international relations theory, security studies, and military strategy, seeking to provide a nuanced understanding of the issues at play.

Filling a critical gap by providing a detailed, interdisciplinary examination of the global "drones race" and its consequences for security, governance, and international norms, this volume will be of interest to scholars and students working in fields such as security studies, arms control, the proliferation of conventional weapons, and international security.

Offers an in-depth exploration of the rapid development and deployment of drone technologies Contextualizes drones within the broader framework of global military competition Provides practical insights into how drones are reshaping military operations and international security dynamics

Autorentext

Mohammad Eslami is a Max Weber Fellow at the Department of Social and Political Science at the European University Institute in Italy. He was a researcher at the Research Centre for Political Science (CICP) at the University of Minho in Portugal, where he investigated Iran's Ballistic Missile and Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicle Programs. He was also a research fellow of the Arms Control Negotiation Academy led by the Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies at Harvard University. His research interests primarily relate to international security, arms control, nuclear proliferation, and Middle East studies. He has published in International Affairs, Third World Quarterly, Review of International Studies, Global Policy, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, Spanish Journal of Political Science, Journal of Asian Security, Small Wars and Insurgencies, and the Journal for Peace and Nuclear Disarmament and contributed to several edited volumes published by Springer and Palgrave Macmillan, among others. ORCID: 0000-0003-0283-1839

Lauro Borges is a Ph.D. student in the Department of Political Science at the University of Nevada, Reno. His concentrations are international relations and comparative politics. His research interests are international security, U.S.-China great-power rivalry, offense-defense theory, and airpower. He has published in Review of International Studies, International Politics , as well as in the Central European Journal of International and Security Studies .

Inhalt

.- Drones and Qualitative Arms Races: A Theoretical Approach.

.- Drones War: A Historical Analysis.

.- Military Drones and the Offense-Defense Balance in the Air Domain.

.- Frontiers of Drones Industry: Majors and evolution in the Air Warfare.

.- Proliferation of military Drones in Regional and Middle Powers.

.- Global Market for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles.

.- Drones and Future Wars.