Elon musk recent comments on MARS being part of AMERICA in
near future highlights the potential threat to OUTER SPACE
TREATY of 1967.
The Outer Space Treaty, formally the Treaty on Principles
Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of
Outer Space, including the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies, is a
multilateral treaty that forms the basis of international space law.
Negotiated and drafted under United Nation.
The Treaty was opened for signature by the three depository
Governments (the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom and
the United States of America) in January 1967, and it entered into
force in October 1967.As of March 2024, 115 countries are
parties to the treaty, while another 22 have signed the treaty but
have not completed ratification.
The Outer Space Treaty provides the basic framework on
international space law, including the following principles:
1.the exploration and use of outer space shall be carried out for
the benefit and in the interests of all countries and shall be the
province of all mankind
2.outer space shall be free for exploration and use by all States;
3.outer space is not subject to national appropriation by claim of
4.States shall not place nuclear weapons or other weapons of
mass destruction in orbit or on celestial bodies or station them in
outer space in any other manner;
5.the Moon and other celestial bodies shall be used exclusively
for peaceful purposes;
6.astronauts shall be regarded as the envoys of mankind;
7.States shall be responsible for national space activities whether
carried out by governmental or non-governmental entities;
8.States shall be liable for damage caused by their space objects;
and
9.States shall avoid harmful contamination of space and celestial
bodies
The key provision of denying sovereignty to any particular country
over any outer space celestial body seems to be in contradiction
with the recent statement by ELON.
The credibility of USA to abide by a certain UN recognised treaty
can not be considered.
Assuming the office one of the earliest step that Trump took was
withdrawal of USA from WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION also
the US president threatened to pull out of WORLD TRADE
ORGANISATIONS.
All these events put a question on how would the OUTER SPACE
TREATY of 1967 moves forward when the present American
dream of humans landing on MARS is achieved . With the
technological progress we have seen in last two decades no one
can question the possibility and potential of human exploration in
outer space With that said the resources utilisation of outer space
will be an area of contention too and US abiding by this treaty is
area of speculation.
Recently there has been a rise in space exploration and projects
globally. Nations around the world find space as the new front for
future war and defence prospects too. The use of STARLINK in
Russia Ukraine war is prime example of dependence of space
tech.With American steps towards MARS, soon we are to see
other countries like China Russia and other European countries in
same direction. All these may lead to geopolitical tension
expanding beyond the planet earth.
India being a signatory to UN OUTER SPACE TREATY has to abide
by the laws . Even if it were to pull out INDIA at present doesn’t
have the technological advancements to fight on equal footing
with the likes of USA Russia and china in possible treaty breach of
outer space.
