Safeguarding space for all: Security and peaceful uses

As the peaceful uses of outer space grow in both number and scope, so too dos their importance in the day-to-day lives of people across the globe. The use of space-based technologies is no longer the exclusive province of states with domestic space programmes; indeed, the widespread dissemination of information and enhanced communications enabled by these technologies have been instrumental in creating the "global village". In light of this, it is not surprising that a growing number of governments-including key space-faring powers- have signaled that the security of space is of serious concern. Developments in technology that could be used to weaponize space and the growing problem of space debris, for example, are threatening the current secure environment in space. Growing insecurity of the space environment could not only destabilize international relations, but could also severely threaten space-based assets that have become increasingly vital for a wide range of essential human activities worldwide. Since 1990, the UN General Assembly has adopted a number of resolutions reaffirming the importance and urgency of preventing an arms race in outer space. The political will among states to take action on this vital issue appears to be growing, but there is a need for action to ensure that space remains safe for peaceful human activity. Concerns of "creeping weaponization" - a scenario in which states, in some cases without any well-reasoned basis for doing so, move toward an arms race in outer space - seem more and more credible.