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

and with opinio juris after ratification, and where no evidence of dissenting practice on the part ofnon-ratifying states is available. Unfortunately, this is not the case for the practice identified withthe Registration Convention.4. Cooperation among Launching StatesCooperation among launching States during the launching stage is vital to the successfullaunching. As provided in the Convention, in case of joint launching, agreement between theparties is required as to which of them is to be deemed the “State of Registry”. Such cooperationshould certainly continue at a later stage. As provided in the Convention, the launching Statesshall jointly determine the State of registry and shall be jointly and severally liable for anydamage caused, etc. Thus, proper coordination among the States is important to sort out the issuesabove.As far as this is concerned, the cooperation among the States involved in the InternationalSpace Station Project provides a very good example. An Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA)was reached in 1988, which was later substituted by a new one in 1998 with the participation ofRussia. The IGA offers a long-term international cooperative framework for detailed design,development, operation, and utilization of a permanently manned civil Space Station for peacefulpurpose. Article 5 of the IGA provides the issue on registration: jurisdiction and control. Theagreement also establishes a distinct liability regime among the States, which can well resolvefuture disputes. Accordingly, it might be advisable that all launching States reach an agreementbefore carrying out launching activities laying down detailed arrangements of registration,liability, etc.To conclude an agreement can be especially meaningful to unregistered space objects. Bymaking reference to the agreement, the unregistered object can be well identified and liabilitiesarising out of the object can be well coordinated among the launching States, even though no oneis the State of registry. Furthermore, agreements on applying national insurance and safetyrequirements can well resolve the issues of compensation at a later stage.ConclusionThe Registration Convention is an important development in the history of space lawlegislations. The enactment of the Convention has helped clarify troubling issues concerning theidentification of space objects and contributed to the application and development of internationallaw governing peaceful use of outer space. However, as widely advocated by space lawyers, moremandatory and extensive requirements would improve the Convention. New developments inspace activities and changing attitudes among space practitioners further necessitate the revisionas desirable. It is under this fast changing background that the ongoing research tasks concerningthe Convention are more than necessary: the discussion of loopholes and possible areas forimprovement can hopefully lay a foundation for future work undertaken by the UNCOPUOS.