This book examines public perceptions of the legitimacy of drones, and how this affects countries’ policies on and the global governance of drone warfare. Scholars recognize that legitimacy is central to countries’ use of drones, and political officials often characterize strikes as legitimate to sustain their use abroad. This book introduces and tests an original middle-range theory that allows scholars, policy-makers, and practitioners to understand how evolving patterns of drone warfare globally shape the public’s perceptions of legitimacy that can moderate countries’ drone policies and the global governance of drones. Rather than relate drone warfare to a platform or counterterrorism strikes only, as experts often do, this book argues that drone warfare is best understood as a function of the unique ways that countries use and constrain strikes. By updating theories of drone warfare, this book provides a generalizable way to understand public perceptions of legitimacy in cross-national contexts, especially among democratic political regimes that are prefigured on political officials’ accountability for the use of force abroad. This book will be of interest to students of security studies, foreign policy, media and communication studies, and International Relations. 'The legitimacy of drone warfare is a highly contentious debate to which Paul Lushenko and Shyam Raman have added a fresh perspective. Their book introduces and tests an elegant theory that tracks how evolving patterns of drone warfare shape public perceptions of legitimacy. An important step in the quest for global governance of drones, The Legitimacy of Drone Warfare is a must read for policy makers, academics, and drone critics alike.' Daniel Brunstetter, University of California, Irvine, USA 'This is the best book I have reviewed that analyses public attitudes about drones, which have irrevocably altered the character of war and will continue to have ever-increasing impacts. It is theoretically innovative, offering a new understanding of drone warfare. It is methodologically rigorous, using novel experiments and simulations to show how evolving patterns of drone warfare shape public perceptions of legitimacy around the world. And, it is relevant, bridging the theory and practice of drone warfare to inform policy, strategy, and research. Any serious practitioner or policy-maker needs to read this defining book.' Richard Clarke , General Retired, former Commander of the U.S. Special Operations Command, USA 'In a crowded field of studies on drone strikes, this new book adds valuable insight by homing in on an often-neglected concept: perceived legitimacy. It is a must-read for scholars who work on air warfare as well as those study attitudes toward war.' Janina Dill, Oxford University, UK 'This book is a model of research on one of the most consequential developments in international security this century: drone warfare. Lushenko and Raman develop and empirically test an original interdisciplinary theory, informed by unique combat experiences, that shapes how we understand the legitimacy of drone warfare. In doing so, they advance the debate on emerging technologies in war and their findings have important implications for U.S. foreign policy and military strategy.' Barry McCaffrey, General Retired, U.S. Army, USA 'The legitimacy of the use of drones in war and counterterrorism has emerged as a key issue in academic research and policy debates over the past two decades. Lushenko and Raman’s work brings clarity to the issues at stake by forcing us to think clearly about how legitimacy functions in international security. By contributing new empirical evidence that tests our baseline assumptions regarding the legitimacy of drone use, this book makes a valuable contribution to the study of drone warfare and will be an important future reference point for the field.' Jack McDonald, Director, Centre for Science and Security Studies, Kings College London, UK 'Lushenko and Raman provide a novel and extremely pertinent framework for evaluating drone warfare as it relates to public perception and legitimacy. Legitimacy is everything in conflict. Legitimacy matters for the politician that orders an action, the practitioner that executes the action, and the public that forms an opinion of the action. The implications of Lushenko and Raman’s framework, while extremely important to drone warfare, has far greater reach that extends into future conflicts as we move into the age where artificial intelligence, autonomy, and robotics will take a larger role in fighting wars. Highly recommended read for anyone involved in international relations, national security, and government policy.' Wayne Phelps, Lieutenant Colonel Retired, U.S. Marine Corps, USA 'The Legitimacy of Drone Warfare: Evaluating Public Perceptions makes a sophisticated and original contribution to our understanding of the crucial concept of legitimacy in international relations