International Cooperation in the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space

Who created this mandate?

A Resolution of the General Assembly, under agenda item 49aInternational cooperation in the peaceful uses of outer space, published in 2019.

What else is in this group?

78 documents · 1960–2025

Newer documents in this group exist (latest: 2025).

2025A/RES/80/76International cooperation in the peaceful uses of outer spaceCompare with earlier document
2024A/RES/79/87International cooperation in the peaceful uses of outer spaceCompare with earlier document
2023A/RES/78/72International cooperation in the peaceful uses of outer spaceCompare with earlier document
2022A/RES/77/121International cooperation in the peaceful uses of outer spaceCompare with earlier document
2021A/RES/76/76International cooperation in the peaceful uses of outer spaceCompare with earlier document

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1 entity

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4 topics

International Cooperation Outer Space Space Exploration Space Technology

What does this mandate say?

40 operative paragraphs

Endorses the report of the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space on the work of its sixty-second session;5

Welcomes with appreciation the adoption by the Committee of the preamble and 21 guidelines for the long-term sustainability of outer space activities, as contained in annex II to the report of the Committee, and the establishment, under a five-year workplan, of a working group under the agenda item on the long-term sustainability of outer space activities of the Scientific and Technical Subcommittee of the Committee, notes that the Committee encouraged States and international intergovernmental organizations to voluntarily take measures to ensure that the guidelines were implemented to the greatest extent feasible and practicable, and emphasizes that the Committee serves as the principal forum for continued institutionalized dialogue on issues related to the implementation and review of the guidelines;

Agrees that the Committee, at its sixty-third session, should consider the substantive items and convene the working group recommended at its sixty-second session, including holding intersessional consultations as necessary, taking into account the concerns of all countries, in particular those of developing countries;

Notes that, at its fifty-eighth session, the Legal Subcommittee of the Committee continued its work, as mandated by the General Assembly in its resolution 73/91;

Agrees that the Legal Subcommittee, at its fifty-ninth session, should consider the substantive items and reconvene the working groups recommended by the Committee, including holding intersessional consultations as necessary, taking into account the concerns of all countries, in particular those of developing countries;

Urges Member States that have not yet become parties to the international treaties governing the uses of outer space to give consideration to ratifying or acceding to those treaties in accordance with their national law, as well as incorporating them into their national legislation;

Notes with satisfaction that the space law curriculum developed by the Office and published in all official languages of the United Nations could encourage further studies within Member States in cooperation with relevant entities in support of capacity-building efforts in space law and policy;

Takes note of the report of the Working Group on the Review of International Mechanisms for Cooperation in the Peaceful Exploration and Use of Outer Space on the work conducted under its multi-year workplan, as finalized at the fifty-sixth session of the Legal Subcommittee, and notes that the report provides an important source of information and useful guidance for further joint undertakings by spacefaring nations and emerging space nations, as appropriate;

Notes that, at its fifty-sixth session, the Scientific and Technical Subcommittee continued its work, as mandated by the General Assembly in its resolution 73/91;

Agrees that the Scientific and Technical Subcommittee, at its fifty-seventh session, should consider the substantive items and reconvene the working groups recommended by the Committee, including holding intersessional consultations as necessary, taking into account the concerns of all countries, in particular those of developing countries;

Reiterates the importance of information-sharing in discovering, monitoring and physically characterizing potentially hazardous near-Earth objects to ensure that all countries, in particular developing countries with limited capacity for predicting and mitigating a near-Earth object impact, are aware of potential threats, emphasizes the need for capacity-building for effective emergency response and disaster management in the event of a near-Earth object impact, and notes with satisfaction the work carried out by the International Asteroid Warning Network and the Space Mission Planning Advisory Group to strengthen international cooperation to mitigate the potential threat posed by near-Earth objects, with the support of the Office, serving as the permanent secretariat of the Advisory Group;

Notes with appreciation that some Member States are already implementing space debris mitigation measures on a voluntary basis, through national mechanisms and consistent with the Space Debris Mitigation Guidelines of the Inter-Agency Space Debris Coordination Committee and with the Space Debris Mitigation Guidelines of the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space, endorsed by the General Assembly in its resolution 62/217, and invites other States to implement, through relevant national mechanisms, the Space Debris Mitigation Guidelines of the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space;

Considers that it is essential that Member States pay more attention to the problem of the gradually increasing probability of collisions of space objects, especially those with nuclear power sources, with space debris, and other aspects of space debris, calls for the continuation of national research on this question, for the development of improved technology for the monitoring of space debris and for the compilation and dissemination of data on space debris, also considers that, to the extent possible, information thereon should be provided to the Scientific and Technical Subcommittee, and agrees that international cooperation is needed to expand appropriate and affordable strategies to minimize the impact of space debris on future space missions;

Urges all Member States, in particular those with major space capabilities, to contribute actively to the goal of preventing an arms race in outer space as an essential condition for the promotion of international cooperation in the exploration and use of outer space for peaceful purposes;

Requests the Committee to continue to consider, as a matter of priority, ways and means of maintaining outer space for peaceful purposes and to report thereon to the General Assembly at its seventy-fifth session, and agrees that the Committee should continue to consider the broader perspective of space security and associated matters that would be instrumental in ensuring the safe and responsible conduct of space activities, including ways to promote international, regional and interregional cooperation to that end;

Emphasizes the central role of the Office in promoting international cooperation in the exploration and peaceful uses of outer space for economic, social and scientific development, in particular for the benefit of developing countries;

Notes with satisfaction the programme of work undertaken by the Office in 2019 to strengthen international cooperation in the conduct of space activities for peaceful purposes and the use of space science and technology and their applications towards the achievement of the internationally agreed Sustainable Development Goals, including the workshops and symposiums conducted to build capacity, the assistance provided to developing countries, at their request, in the development of national space policy and legislation in conformity with international space law, and actions implemented to strengthen institutional capacity in space activities;

Welcomes, in this regard, the activities being carried out by the Office to promote gender equality and the increased role of women in space activities, including through targeted capacity-building and technical advisory activities, and efforts to encourage enhanced involvement of women and girls in science, technology, engineering and mathematics education, and invites Member States to make voluntary contributions to those activities;

Requests the Office to continue to apprise the Committee and its Scientific and Technical Subcommittee and Legal Subcommittee, at their respective sessions in 2020, of the status of its capacity-building activities;

Recognizes the capacity-building activities under the United Nations Programme on Space Applications, which provide unique benefits for Member States, in particular developing countries, participating in those activities;

Notes with satisfaction the activities carried out under the United Nations Platform for Space-based Information for Disaster Management and Emergency Response (UN-SPIDER), and recognizes the significant achievements made and the advisory support provided to Member States within the framework of UN-SPIDER since its establishment in 2006 with the valuable contributions of its network of regional support offices, and encourages Member States, on a voluntary basis, to provide the programme with the additional resources necessary to address the increasing demand for support successfully and in a timely manner;

Reiterates the importance of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030, in which the value of space-based technology and Earth observation for disaster management and emergency response is recognized, and notes with satisfaction the efforts of the Office and its UN-SPIDER programme towards promoting international cooperation as a way to enhance the use of space-based technologies and related services at the national and local levels in contributing to the implementation of the Sendai Framework and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development;2

Notes with satisfaction the continuous progress made by the International Committee on Global Navigation Satellite Systems with the support of the Office, in its capacity as executive secretariat of the International Committee, towards achieving compatibility and interoperability among global and regional space-based positioning, navigation and timing systems and in the promotion of the use of global navigation satellite systems and their integration into national infrastructure, particularly in developing countries, and notes with appreciation that the International Committee held its fourteenth meeting in Bengaluru, India, from 8 to 13 December 2019;

Notes with appreciation that the regional centres for space science and technology education, affiliated to the United Nations, namely, the African regional centres for space science and technology education in the French and English languages, located in Morocco and Nigeria, respectively, the Regional Centre for Space Science and Technology Education for Asia and the Pacific, located in China, the Centre for Space Science and Technology Education in Asia and the Pacific, located in India, the Regional Centre for Space Science and Technology Education for Latin America and the Caribbean, with campuses located in Brazil and Mexico, and the Regional Centre for Space Science and Technology Education for Western Asia, located in Jordan, have continued their education programmes in 2019, encourages the regional centres to continue to promote greater participation of women in their education programmes, and agrees that the regional centres should continue to report to the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space on their activities;

Emphasizes that regional and interregional cooperation in the field of space activities is essential to strengthen the peaceful uses of outer space, assist Member States in the development of their space capabilities and contribute to the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, to that end requests relevant regional organizations and their groups of experts to offer the assistance necessary so that countries can carry out the recommendations of regional conferences, and in that regard notes the importance of the equal participation of women in all fields of science and technology;

Recognizes, in that regard, the important role played by such organizations as the Asia-Pacific Space Cooperation Organization and the European Space Agency and by conferences and other mechanisms, such as the African Leadership Conference on Space Science and Technology for Sustainable Development, the Asia-Pacific Regional Space Agency Forum and the Space Conference of the Americas, in strengthening regional and international cooperation among States;

Notes with satisfaction the adoption of the African Space Policy and Strategy by the Assembly of the African Union at its twenty-sixth ordinary session, held in Addis Ababa on 30 and 31 January 2016, notes that this achievement marks the first step towards the realization of an African outer space programme within the framework of the African Union Agenda 2063, and welcomes in this regard the establishment of the African Space Agency, to be hosted by Egypt;

Emphasizes the need to increase the benefits of space technology and its applications and to contribute to an orderly growth of space activities favourable to sustained economic growth and sustainable development in all countries, including strengthening sustainable spatial data infrastructure at the regional and national levels and building resilience to reduce the consequences of disasters, in particular in developing countries;

Reiterates the need to promote the benefits of space technology and its applications in the major United Nations conferences and summits for economic, social and cultural development and related fields, and recognizes that the fundamental significance of space science and technology and their applications for global, regional, national and local sustainable development processes should be promoted in the formulation of policies and programmes of action and their implementation, including through efforts towards achieving the objectives of those conferences and summits and in implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development;

Encourages Member States, to that end, to promote the inclusion in those conferences, summits and processes of the relevance of space science and technology applications and the use of space-derived geospatial data, and in general, space-based data and infrastructures, with the involvement of the Office;

Encourages the Office to take active part in those conferences, summits and processes and other activities in support of their objectives, as appropriate, and to conduct capacity-building activities, hold lectures and participate in academic and research activities to foster international cooperation in the peaceful uses of outer space;

Urges the Inter-Agency Meeting on Outer Space Activities (UN-Space), under the leadership of the Office, to continue to examine how space science and technology and their applications could contribute to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and encourages entities of the United Nations system to participate, as appropriate, in UN-Space coordination efforts;

Encourages the Office to continue to conduct capacity-building and outreach activities associated with space security and transparency and confidence-building measures in outer space activities, as appropriate, and within the context of the long-term sustainability of outer space activities;

Also encourages the Office to continue to explore existing avenues and new opportunities to increase its capability to meet the growing demand for support to strengthen the capacity of countries, in particular developing countries, in using space science and technology and their applications and to inform the Committee of those efforts;

Agrees that the Office should pursue greater engagement with industry and private sector entities to further their support for and contributions to the overall work of the Office;

Appeals to Governments, the relevant entities of the United Nations system, intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations, institutions, industry and private sector entities and individuals to make voluntary contributions to the trust fund in support of the United Nations Programme on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space in order to support the efforts of the Office to secure additional resources to facilitate the full implementation of its programme of work, including, where appropriate, the financing of special projects, and otherwise to assist the Office in carrying out technical cooperation and assistance activities, in particular for developing countries;

Reiterates, with regard to the composition of the bureaux of the Committee and its subcommittees for the period 2020–2021, that the Committee and its subcommittees should elect their officers at their respective sessions in 2020 in accordance with that composition;

Decides that the Dominican Republic, Rwanda and Singapore shall become members of the Committee;

Endorses the decision of the Committee to grant the status of observer to the Moon Village Association, in accordance with the procedures of the Committee;

Encourages the regional groups to promote active participation in the work of the Committee and its subsidiary bodies by the States members of the Committee that are also members of the respective regional groups.

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