New York– On 2 July 2026, the Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED), Japan, the Republic of Korea, Portugal, the United Arab Emirates, the United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism (UNOCT), and the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) co-organized a side event on the threat of terrorist use of Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS).
The objective of this side event was to discuss the evolving threat of UAS and to identify practical, implementation-focused approaches, enhance international cooperation, improve the alignment of legal, regulatory, technical, and operational responses, and strengthen coordination to better adapt to the threat of terrorist use of UAS.
Ms. Natalia Gherman, Assistant Secretary-General and Executive Director of CTED, highlighted that the adopted by the Counter-Terrorism Committee in 2023 represent a significant milestone, consolidating global expertise and reinforcing a shared commitment to prevent the use of UAS for terrorist purposes.
Mr. Jean-Philippe Morange, Senior Legal Officer at CTED, stressed that while UAS have become a credible and evolving terrorist threat, counter-UAS strategies and technologies remain limited, with States instead relying on fragmented aviation, criminal, and security laws.
Resources
The concept note and agenda for the side event is available here.
You can watch the event .
Photos from the side event are available .
For more information about CTED’s other events at 2026 Counter-Terrorism Week, please visit this page.