Proceedings of the Workshop - United Nations Office for Outer ...

3. Obligations relating to Rescue and Return of Astronauts3.1. Preliminary IssuesArticles 1 to 4 of the Rescue Agreement deal with the rescue and return of astronauts.These articles are intended to reach assistance to astronauts in distress. Two points may be madeat the outset. One, the Agreement refers to “astronauts” two times in the general title of theAgreement itself and again two times in the first paragraph of the preamble. However, in thesubstantive provisions relating to obligations of states, it uses the term “the personnel of aspacecraft” (see Articles 1, 3, & 4). The reason for this might have been the fact that theAmericans used the term “Astronauts” and the Russians “cosmonauts,” and that therefore theterm “personnel of the spacecraft” would sound neutral.Two, the astronauts in distress envisaged in the Agreement are “the personnel of anspacecraft”1. Who “have suffered accident,” or2. Who “are experiencing conditions of distress” or3. Who “have made an emergency or unintended landing” (a) in the territory of a stateparty, or (b) on the high seas or (c) “in any other place not under the jurisdiction ofany State.” (Article 1)Interestingly, the last phrase noted above - “in any other place not under the jurisdictionof any State” – could include any place in outer space itself, such as any celestial body or eventhe open space, although this was not the original intention of the drafters of the Agreement.3.2. Duty to NotifyEach state party to the Agreement which “receives information or discovers” the fact ofastronauts in distress, has two separate duties of immediate notification:(1) It shall notify -(a) The launching authority, or(b) If it unable to identify and immediately communicate with the launchingauthority, “immediately make a public announcement by all appropriate means ofcommunication at its disposal.”(2) It shall also immediately notify the UN Secretary-General “who should disseminatethe information without delay by all appropriate means of communication at hisdisposal.” (Article 1).Very clearly, the purpose of notification is to let all States be informed of the distresssituation, and whoever can, must be able to bring relief to the astronauts in distress.3.3. Duty to Rescue and Render Assistance to Astronauts in DistressThe Agreement provides for the duty of every State Party to rescue and render assistanceto the astronauts in distress under two situations, namely (a) if the astronauts are found in “theterritory under the jurisdiction” of a State Party, (Article 2) and (b) if they are found “on the highseas or in any other place not under the jurisdiction of any State” (Article 3).