The U.S. has approved its first policy for selling armed drones to allies, the State Department said Tuesday.
"The United States is committed to stringent standards for the sale, transfer, and subsequent use of U.S.-origin military" drones, the department said in an emailed statement.
The new policy sets guidelines for all drone exports, which the department said it will assess on a "case-by-case basis," including "armed systems."
Although there's growing international interest in drones, also called unmanned aerial systems, or UAS, other countries and human-rights groups have criticized the U.S. over their increased use as weapons under President Barack Obama amid cases of civilian casualties.
"As other nations begin to employ military UAS more regularly and as the nascent commercial UAS market emerges, the United States has a responsibility to ensure that sales, transfers, and subsequent use of all U.S.-origin UAS are responsible and consistent with U.S. national security and foreign policy interests, including economic security, as well as with U.S. values and international standards," the State Department said.
An unarmed version of the Predator drone has been approved by the State Department for sale to the United Arab Emirates. Congress last month gave its approval to an informal State Department notification of a direct sale to the United Arab Emirates by San Diego-based General Atomics. Congress must approve a formal notification before the sale can proceed.
Unarmed military drones include the Global Hawk, made by Falls Church, Va.-based Northrop Grumman Corp.
The move to allow drone exports follows the announcement by the Federal Aviation Administration over the weekend of rules permitting U.S. businesses to use small, unmanned aircraft under strict limits, including that they must be flown at low altitudes by a person with an FAA certificate and only within sight of the operator.
The State Department said the export safeguards will require that each recipient nation agree to assurances that drones will be used in accordance with international law.
Recipients can't use military drones to conduct unlawful surveillance or use unlawful force against their own populations, according to State Department officials who provided information under rules requiring anonymity.
The export rules are part of a broader policy review by the U.S., which includes plans to work with other countries to shape international standards for the sale, transfer and use of military drones.
The new U.S. policy builds on the U.S. Conventional Arms Transfer Policy and is consistent with the requirements of the Arms Export Control Act and the Foreign Assistance Act, which govern all U.S. military transfers, the State Department said.
Information for this article was contributed by Tony Capaccio and Larry Liebert of Bloomberg News.
A Section on 02/18/2015