Electronic Proceedings - United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs

IntroductionThe Workshop on Capacity Building in Space Law, coordinated by the United Nationsand the International Institute of Air and Space Law and hosted by the Government of theNetherlands, was held between 18 and 21 November in The Hague, Netherlands.A continuous increase in space activities and a broadening participation in spaceactivities means that space laws, policies and institutions are becoming a priority for a greaternumber of countries worldwide. It has also highlighted the need for the ratification andeffective implementation of the five United Nations treaties on outer space.The Third United Nations Conference on the Exploration and Peaceful Uses of OuterSpace (UNISPACE III) called for action to promote the development of space law to meet theneeds of the international community. The Conference emphasized the importance of theUnited Nations treaties on outer space and invited States that had not yet done so to ratify oraccede to the treaties.A recent review by the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space and its LegalSubcommittee has revealed that one of the likely reasons for the low level of ratification ofsome of the treaties is a lack of awareness of the benefits of adherence to the outer spacetreaties. In addition, the actual adherence in practice by some States to the provisions of thetreaties to which they are parties, and their implementation at the domestic level, has alsobeen found to be in need of improvement.The need for effective laws and policies on space activities, not just on an internationallevel but also on the national level, is becoming clear to the increasing number of States nowactively involved in the field of space. The successful operation of space law, policies andinstitutions in a country relies on the presence of suitable professionals. Therefore,educational opportunities and institutions that address the subject of space law and policy arealso important.Finally, the Action Plan of the United Nations Strategy for an Era of Application ofInternational Law calls on every office, department, programme, fund and agency of theUnited Nations, to “review its current activities and consider what else it might do, within itsexisting mandate and given existing resources, to promote the application of international law,and to provide technical assistance to help Governments implement their commitments underthe treaties to which they are or might wish to become parties.”The Workshop provided an overview of the United Nations treaties and principles onouter space, examined and compared various aspects of existing national space laws andconsidered the development of university level studies and programmes in space law. Thismulti-levelled approach to capacity building in space law sought to increase knowledge andawareness of the international treaties and principles developed under the auspices of theUnited Nations relating to space activities and to provide a basis for their implementation on apractical level through the development and administration of domestic legislation andregulatory regimes.The objectives of the Workshop were:(a) to promote understanding, acceptance and implementation of the United Nationstreaties and principles on outer space;iv