ROOM
31
Space Security
extent, scope and nature. One US Air Force
General is reported to have stated that after a
war in space, “You go back to World War II... you
go back to the Industrial Age”.
Most of the above issues can only be resolved
through better international cooperation and
understanding, which should in turn lead to the
expansion and strengthening of a global space
governance system built on solid legal principles.
The following sections of this feature expand
on the need for mechanisms of governance
covering specific areas of space activities, as
well as looking at issues that have to be resolved
in the longer term. The subject is complex and
these summary articles can only provide limited
information about global space governance as an
access point to the wider debate.
Rule of law is very important here on Earth
and, as we expand ever further outwards, this
is increasingly so in outer space as well. Space
matters for everyone and it is our combined
responsibility to ensure that the sustainable use of
outer space is assured for the benefit and perhaps
even ultimate survival of all humankind.
About the authors
Prof Dr Ram S. Jakhu is the Director of the Institute of Air and Space Law
and the Centre for Research in Air and Space Law of McGill University,
Montreal, Canada. He possesses professional experience of over 30 years
in the field of international and national space law and policy.
Dr Md Tanveer Ahmad is the Executive Director of the Centre for
Research in Air and Space Law of McGill University, Montreal, Canada
and the Editor of the
Annals of Air and Space Law.
The Bulletin of the
Atomic Scientists moved
the hands on its infamous
‘Doomsday Clock’ 30
seconds closer to
midnight in January 2017.
Space matters
for everyone
and it is our
combined
responsibility
to ensure that
the sustainable
use of outer
space is
assured for the
benefit of all
humankind
debris, unilateral exploitation of natural space
resources, growing military and strategic uses of
space, and the contamination of both Earth and
space environments - remain without specific
regulatory control and guidance.
The 2015 ‘Space Resource Exploration and
Utilization Act’ of the US initiated an international
controversy, since it unilaterally allowed national
private property rights over natural resources
from asteroids and the Moon, an action considered
contrary to the well established international
prohibition of property rights in space.
Shortly afterwards, Luxembourg and the
United Arab Emirates indicated they would
also draft legislation regarding space mining
activities and the former has already adopted
a draft law to this effect. It is likely that more
States will follow these examples, setting in
motion the development of a very different set
of space governance principles.
Currently, there is also no effective regulatory
means in place to control the exponential
increase in space debris and no regulatory effort
is underway to facilitate debris removal - at
least the big pieces - which in themselves will
generate more debris as they collide in space.
Over the past six months, international news
media have carried regular stories on space
security and the prospect of war in space which
could affect operating satellites. For the world at
large, even a day without satellite systems could
be devastating and bring about the possibility of
serious disruption and damage of unimaginable
