EU Presidency Statement - Peaceful Uses of Outer Space

Mr. Chairman,

I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Union. The Central and Eastern European countries associated with the European Union, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, and the associated countries Cyprus and Malta as well as the EFTA country of the European Economic Area, Norway, align themselves with this statement.

Mr. Chairman,

Peaceful uses of Outer Space provide a powerful tool to bring about global cooperation and thus to further progress for the well-being of humanity, protecting our planet's environment and managing its resources. There is a Universe to explore and applications to be developed and utilised for the benefit of all mankind.

The European Union believes that space science and technology will play an increasing role in achieving the goals and monitoring the implementation of international agreements. This is true also as regards the objectives of the Johannesburg World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD). Space applications are fundamental tools in the work to bring about sustainable development in all countries and regions of the World. We are therefore pleased to see that the use of space applications, notably Earth observation for various purposes including disaster management, is recognised as an important tool in the plan of implementation of the WSSD.

Mr. Chairman,

The European Union is an active supporter of the work of the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS) and attaches great importance to the work of the UN Office for Outer Space Affairs (OOSA), not least with regard to the objectives of capacity building and building awareness among decision makers in order to strengthen local support for the operational use of space technology in developing countries. The EU supports the work of OOSA aimed at enhancing coordination of outer space activities within the UN-system, especially through the Inter-Agency Meeting on Outer Space Activities. The EU also expresses its appreciation of the Office's efforts to strengthen regional capacities, and its valuable technical advisory services. The EU strongly supports efforts to ensure that space science and technology contributes to the wider efforts to achieve the Millennium Development Goals.

In this context let me take the opportunity to commend Ms. Mazlan Othman, former Director of the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs, for her outstanding work over the past years.

Mr. Chairman,

The EU welcomes the active role of the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space and its subcommittees in the implementation of the recommendations of the Third United Nations Conference on the Exploration and Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UNISPACE III). EU commends the work carried out in this respect by the Committee's action teams. In the field of space law, the Legal Subcommittee this year successfully concluded its working group on the review of the concept of the "launching State".

A working group was established by COPUOS this year to prepare a report for submission to the General Assembly, in order for the Assembly to review and appraise, at its fifty-ninth session, in 2004, the implementation of the outcome of UNISPACE III and to consider further actions and initiatives. The European Union fully supports the recommendations of the working group as contained in Annex I to the Report of the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (document A/57/20).

Mr. Chairman,

Universally accepted guidelines and recommendations to allow effective control of the pollution generated by debris from space activities must be elaborated in the near future. EU welcomes the work begun in this regard by the Inter-Agency Space Debris Coordination Committee (IADC) and urges IADC to submit its proposal on debris mitigation guidelines to the COPOUS as soon as possible. The EU considers that a debate on the problems caused by spatial debris in international law deserves to be added without further delay to the agenda of the Legal Subcommittee.

The European Union is moreover concerned by the risk of seeing private corporations embarking on an attempt to commercially exploit the Moon or other celestial bodies, in a potentially polluting way, regardless of the principles of international space law recognized by the General Assembly of the United Nations. COPOUS must urgently give this question all the attention it deserves, notably for its juridical implications, by putting it on the agenda at its next session.

Mr. Chairman,

Europe is one of the major players in the space field and the European Space Agency (ESA), an intergovernmental organisation with 15 Member States, is responsible for the development of the majority of European space activities. In order to strengthen its position and capacities as well as to stimulate the use of space applications in the European Union, ESA together with the European Commission have developed an overall European Space Strategy.

To highlight the use of space technology, the European Space Agency participated in the WSSD, presenting several of its programmes on applications supporting sustainable development and the first data obtained from the ENVISAT satellite, which is dedicated to the monitoring of the environment. It is envisaged to deliver data about global warming, ozone depletion and climate change for at least five years. Such data and information is absolutely necessary as basis for political decisions with consequences for climate and environment. In August this year the first of a new generation of meteorological satellites was launched, the MSG-1. It will improve weather forecasting, our understanding of climate change and the issue of the planets water resources.

Mr. Chairman,

Let me briefly mention two important cooperation projects between the European Union and ESA: the GALILEO and the GMES.

GALILEO is a complete civil radio navigation system with many potential applications, for example in road, rail, air and maritime traffic control. The system is envisaged to be operational from 2008. The GMES (Global Monitoring for Environment and Security) combines space-borne, land-based and airborne technologies. Data from ENVISAT and other space-borne and terrestrial observation systems will improve the ability of European researchers and public authorities to, inter alia, track environmental pollution, react to emergencies and improve cross-border response to catastrophic events.

ESA's and its Member States' cooperation in ISS (International Space Station) together with the USA, the Russian Federation, Japan and Canada is also a noteworthy example of a peaceful cooperation in space.

In conclusion Mr. Chairman,

Europe has developed and is developing space tools, systems and services not only in support of European policies on environment and climate, but also to play its role in the global effort to monitor the health of our planet.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

| Arriba |

• EU Presidency Statement - Draft resolution on Prevention of an Arms Race in Outer Space (27/10/2003)
• EU Presidency Statement - Peaceful uses of outer space (22/10/2001)