The 26^th International Annual Conference on the Legal Aspects of the Usages of Outer Space: Opportunities & Challenges

Title of paper:

The Use of Space for Defense Purposes

Abstract of paper:

By the end of World War II, the race to use space for military purposes between the superpowers has started. It is now widely known that Sputnik 1 had paved the way to legalize the use of spy satellites that orbit above other state’s territories, which later on became a customary international law when no state protested against the Soviet Union’s satellite. During the cold war, the US and the Soviet Union relied heavily on the use of surveillance satellites in orbit above each of their territories. With time, several types of military satellites have been developed and employed in many fields. These applications not only have a critical impact on military operations on the ground, in the sea and air, but also enhance the defensive capabilities for the military. Nowadays, satellites have become indispensable for infrastructure on earth and military operations. The defensive uses of space are vital for national security since they provide the ability to deter man-made or natural threats against space and terrestrial capabilities, assets, and infrastructure. These defensive military uses of outer space whether active or passive are playing a significant role in modern military operations through providing information, intelligence, protection, and other services. From legal perspective, the international space law, specifically Article IV of the OST dose not restrict the defensive uses of space except the placement and stationing of nuclear and mass destruction weapons in Earth’s orbit, celestial bodies, and outer space. As a result, the active and passive defense uses are not prohibited under the international space law unless such uses are aggressive and cause a threat and use of force as per the UN Charter. On the other hand, Article III of OST expresses clearly the obligation of member States to maintain international peace and security which indicates that weaponization of space not the passive use of space is contrary to the OST and the peaceful use of outer space. In addition, even the active defense use if it is triggered by the right of self-defense, it would not breach a state obligation to maintain international peace and security under Article III of the OST. Hence, the passive military activities in space seem in line with the international space law and customary international law due to states practice. However, the active defensive applications although not prohibited, they might affect the international peace and security if not exclusively used for defensive purposes. Furthermore, a state’s right of self-defense is recognized based on Article 51 of the UN Charter. The dominant interpretation of this right is that a state has the right to self-defense if any of its space assets have been attacked. Another approach suggests that an anticipatory act may be exercised if there is a necessity of self-defense, but such an act must be proportionate. However, which approach a state could use remains debatable. Thus, a state in exercising its right of self-defense may use space-based capabilities, ASAT, or BMD, providing that such exercise must fulfill the requirements as per international law. Overall, the current international space law does not restrict the use of defensive space applications except the placement and stationing of nuclear and mass destruction weapons in Earth’s orbit, celestial bodies, and outer space, or in case these defensive space applications are aggressive  or cause a threat of force as per the international law.

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Title of paper:

Conflicts in Space and MILAMOS.

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The Private Sector Commercial Utilization of Outer Space.

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Title of paper:

Commercial space – buying satellites, launches etc.?

Abstract of paper:

How are commercial transactions different when they involve a space activity?  Most commercial legal practitioners are familiar with the legal conventions associated with the sale and purchase of equipment and services.  When this equipment is designed to be launched into space or the service involves the movement or operation of objects in space, the regulatory environment and risk management drivers are very different.

Unlike equipment that is located on earth, most space-based assets cannot be accessed for recovery or repair if something goes wrong.  This has led to a treatment of concepts like negligence, liability and insurance that differs from terrestrial transactions.  Some of the conventional ways of treating these concepts are surprising to practitioners who are unfamiliar with the space industry.

This presentation will outline some of the key concepts that underpin commercial relationships when the transaction has an outer space dimension, starting with the purchase of spacecraft and launch services.

Title of paper:

Safeguarding the United Arab Emirates’ Intellectual Property Rights in Outer

Abstract of paper:

This paper will look at protecting intellectual property rights in outer space as a common interest for new players and their private investors, particularly from the perspective of the UAE. The paper offers suggestions that enables the UAE to keep up with the involvement of private parties in outer-space. In sum, the paper proposes improvements to the UAE laws coupled with international understandings on protecting intellectual property in outer space. This paper argues that it is possible to reconcile protecting intellectual property rights in outer space with the norms of international laws by improving national legislation and cooperating with other states.

Title of paper:

The Legal Regulation of Space Waste

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Environmental responsibility for outer space activities

Abstract of paper:

As space activity among a few world nations began, early legislative processes at the international level, primarily through the United Nations (UN) General Assembly and its Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS), set out to gain agreement that space would be used for peaceful purposes. Space activities have since evolved from being the domain of a few, to that of making low cost access available to many. Outer space activity is a global enterprise. The first section of this paper discusses characteristics of the Earth’s space environment and the challenges it presents to users. The second section reviews how activities have evolved, and more specifically how the space environment influences programs and missions. The third section discusses trends and how space is logically evolving from the domain of governments to more commercial involvement. The paper concludes with discussion of maintaining responsibility for the environment as a means of ensuring the long term sustainability of space through continued peaceful global collaboration. 

Title of paper:

Dispute Resolutions of  Space Activities according to UN Instruments

Abstract of paper:

The purpose of this article is to address the problem of whether the jurisdictional immunity of the States should indeed be suspended if a case was brought before a national courts against a foreign country for civil compensation for violations of international jus cogens norms? Here, important questions are raised which the article will seek to address and answer: Is it conceivable that there is a contradiction between the jurisdictional immunity of the State and the peremptory international jus cogens norms? Does the norm of jus cogens prevail over the norm of judicial immunity of a State in the event of conflict? This article is based on several hypotheses that it sought to prove and to substantiate their authenticity in the light of the current state of international law which has become a functional concept of State sovereignty and makes human rights and freedoms one of its fundamental pillars.

Title of paper:

Dispute Resolution in Space Law Consider the Possibilities

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