In the February,
2007 issue of Geospatial Today,
there were three items on the use
of weapons in space and the so-called
‘tests’ in space. On
page 5, the commentary is on “Cooperation
not Confrontation”. There
the commentator mentions the news
that “China had pulverised
one of its own ageing weather satellites
by firing a missile from the ground”.
The piece went on to say that “Beijing’s
anti-satellite test has raised fears
of another space race and concerns
over the security of satellites”.
A news report in another part of
the journal headlined, “ISRO
Chief slams China anti-satellite
test” quoted the ISRO chief
as saying that such an act amounted
to weaponisation of outer space.
The following item on the same page
highlighted the Chinese Defence
Minister’s statement that
Beijing had no plans to carry out
any more tests.
What is the problem?
The issue that these various commentaries
and official statements raise really
hinges on what was actually done
– is shooting your own satellite
a missile test or an act of due
diligence and community spirit in
removing space junk or a trend towards
militarisation and weaponisation
of outer space?
What took place can be described
as a clean-up following the example
of the United States, which did
the same thing in 1985. No doubt
a missile was used, but does this
constitute a missile test in the
true sense of the term? What is
the law and what is the policy on
the uses of outer space? For this,
we need to look at the various UN
Treaties and Principles on Space
Law (see www.unoosa.org/oosa/SpaceLaw/
Treaties.html).
UN treaties and legal principles
Extant UN treaties deal with the
principles governing the activities
of states in the exploration and
use of outer space (“Outer
Space Treaty” 1967), the rescue
of astronauts (“Rescue Agreement”
1968), liability for damage caused
by space objects (“Liability
Convention” 1972), registration
of objects launched into outer space
(“Registration Convention”
1976) and agreement governing the
activities of states on the moon
and other celestial bodies (“Moon
Agreement” 1984). Each of
these treaties and agreements has
been ratified and signed by various
governments over time.
Besides, there have been five declarations
and legal principles, adopted by
the UN General Assembly (GA), governing
the activities of states in the
exploration and use of outer space,
including that of the use of satellites
for TV broadcasting, remote sensing,
nuclear power sources and the declaration
on international cooperation in
the exploration and use of outer
space for the benefit of all and
in particular, the needs of developing
countries.
The Outer Space Treaty provides
a framework for International Space
Law and reiterates that space should
be reserved for peaceful uses. It
came into effect in October, 1967.
