United Nations:- Pakistan has called for steps to prevent the weaponization of space, saying such actions would avert serious threats to international peace and security.
Ambassador Munir Akram told the UN General Assembly on Monday: “Security threats in and from outer space have escalated sharply in recent years. This is evident from the placement of weapons in space and its increasing characterization as another war frontier in the military policies and doctrines of major powers.”
The 193-member assembly last month debated Russia’s veto in the Security Council, which blocked a draft resolution aimed at preventing new alien arms races.
In his remarks, Ambassador Akram said that the US-Japan draft resolution correctly recognized that preventing an arms race in space would avert a serious threat to international peace and security. He emphasized the importance of the Outer Space Treaty and reiterated the importance of the Geneva-based Conference on Disarmament as the only multilateral forum for disarmament negotiations.
Pakistan, he said, has always taken a principled stand that resolutions on global disarmament issues should be discussed and concluded in an inclusive and transparent manner within the relevant fora – the Conference on Disarmament (CD), the UN Commission on Disarmament and the First Committee. of the UN General Assembly, which deals with issues of disarmament and international security.
Pakistan’s envoy has expressed regret that there has been no progress in a treaty to prevent an arms race in outer space for more than four decades.
“At first,” he said, “some dismissed the possibility of an arms race in space. Then they argued that it was too late to prevent its militarization and called for a focus on non-weapon measures.
Pakistan, Ambassador Akram said, advocates a comprehensive approach with a dual focus on both capabilities and behaviour.
“We have consistently pushed for urgent negotiations on a legally binding instrument on PAROS (Preventing Arms Race in Outer Space). At the same time, we have also actively contributed to non-legally binding measures such as Transparency and Confidence Building Measures (TCBM).
However, he added that the evident gaps in the international legal regime cannot be filled by the TCBM or other non-legally binding norms.
Regretting that several states continue to block the opening of such negotiations in the Committee on Disarmament (CD) on a legally binding instrument that prohibits the placement of weapons in outer space and outlaws the threat or use of force against objects in outer space, Pakistan’s envoy said they failed explain how such actions would undermine their security interests. “They have also failed to justify why they cannot deal with definition and verification during negotiations – the approach they are advocating for the next item on the CD.”
Ambassador Akram therefore hoped that this issue of weaponization in space, which had been raised in the Security Council, would be referred to the C.D. for further consideration in negotiations on a treaty to prevent an arms race in outer space.
Russian Ambassador Vasily Nebenzia earlier explained why his delegation voted against the US-Japan draft resolution.
He said that despite its “nice-sounding title”, the text did not address its stated objective, as that objective was already covered by existing international agreements, and expressed concern.
“During the negotiations on this proposal, we tried in vain to get an answer from the authors as to why they were trying to use the Security Council to reaffirm pre-existing international obligations on space exploration,” he said.
He referred to the 1967 Outer Space Treaty, which clearly prohibits the placement of weapons of mass destruction in outer space, and suggested that discussions on the issue take place in specialized forums that would include all members of the General Assembly.
Ambassador Nebenzia criticized the proposal for attempting to impose new restrictions through the Security Council that had not previously been established by any international instruments, including the 1967 treaty.
“Imposing such duties without preliminary, professional, legal and technical discussions is unacceptable,” he said.
For his part, Japanese Ambassador Kazuyuki Yamazaki urged delegates to consider the catastrophic consequences if a nuclear weapon were to be detonated in space, resulting in the destruction of satellites and critical space infrastructure with irreversible impacts on human lives around the world.
“The draft Security Council resolution on weapons of mass destruction in outer space, drafted by the US and Japan, was intended to prevent such a nuclear disaster for humanity,” he said.
