EU Statement – UN General Assembly 4th Committee: International cooperation in the peaceful uses of outer space

Chair,

I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Union and its Member States.

The Candidate Countries North Macedonia, Montenegro*, Albania*, Ukraine, the Republic of Moldova, Bosnia and Herzegovina* and Georgia, as well as Monaco and San Marino align themselves with this statement.

1. The EU and its Member States have always upheld and will continue to uphold the UN Charter and the rules and principles it enshrines. They reaffirm the Union’s steadfast commitment to effective multilateralism and to international law with the United Nations at its core. Violations of the UN Charter undermine the entire UN system. In this context, we condemn Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and DPRK’s repeated launches using ballistic missile technologies, as these actions constitute clear and flagrant violations of multiple UN Security Council Resolutions.

2. The UN Pact for the Future recognises the need for urgent action to ensure the safe and sustainable use of space for the benefit of all humankind and encourages the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS) to further consult on the proposal to hold a fourth United Nations Conference on the Peaceful Exploration of Outer Space (UNISPACE IV). The EU supports convening the Conference to address space sustainability, space traffic management and coordination, space debris and space resources, as well as international cooperation, and to invite the private sector, civil society and other stakeholders. The EU welcomes the efforts of Italy, as current COPUOS Chair, in facilitating the discussion. Furthermore, the EU stresses the importance of providing UNOOSA with the necessary resources for its realisation.

3. We emphasize the role of UNOOSA, serving also as the secretariat for COPUOS, in promoting international cooperation for the peaceful uses of outer space, ensuring the long-term sustainability of space activities and promoting the Space2030 Agenda.

4. The 1967 Outer Space Treaty and other relevant UN treaties, accompanied by the guiding principles developed in the UN framework, constitute the cornerstone of the global governance in outer space. The EU and its Member States reiterate the applicability of International Humanitarian Law in outer space and will continue to promote responsible behaviours in outer space, recalling all obligations under the Outer Space Treaty, including those comprised in Article IV, which obligates States Parties not to place in orbit around the Earth any objects carrying nuclear weapons or any other kinds of weapons of mass destruction, install such weapons on celestial bodies, or station such weapons in outer space in any other manner. We urge all States to refrain from any threatening activity, and to abide by the Outer Space Treaty’s Article IV and call upon all States which have not yet done so to join relevant UN treaties on outer space and faithfully implement them.

5. As enshrined in the Outer Space Treaty, the exploration and use of outer space is the province of all humankind. We continue to actively promote the preservation of a safe, secure, stable and sustainable space environment and the peaceful use of outer space as well as access to outer space for future generations. We strongly condemn uncoordinated Rendezvous and Proximity operations that pose a risk to space safety, as well as pursuit and harassment of other satellites. Such conduct raises serious concerns regarding both the safety and security of outer space.

6. COPUOS and its Subcommittees, assisted by UNOOSA, remain the indispensable fora for international cooperation in the peaceful uses of outer space, as well as for the development of international space law, international norms, guidelines and best practices, including on space safety. Its work is essential to address the pressing challenges that we confront in outer space today and to guarantee the implementation of international space law. With the private sector significantly involved in outer space activities, we stress the crucial role of COPUOS in enhancing transparency and building confidence. We must all ensure that COPUOS can continue to deliver. Therefore, we attach great value to the Vienna spirit and call on all UN Member States to bolster this longstanding tradition of mutual trust and willingness to compromise.

7. The expanding membership of COPUOS highlights the growing significance of outer space and space technologies for societies. EU Member States welcome the interest of further countries to join COPUOS.

Chair,

8. Space traffic management and avoidance of collisions remain key issues for COPUOS. We encourage the Working Group on the Long-Term Sustainability of Outer Space Activities to further advance discussions on implementing the 21 LTS Guidelines and the Space Debris Mitigation Guidelines. We strongly support the new Expert Group on Space Situational Awareness of the Working Group on the Long-term Sustainability of Outer Space Activities. Finally, we advocate for the development of capacity building activities with the aim of ensuring that every nation has the capability to contribute to the protection of space assets from collisions.

9. The EU aims to contribute to space traffic management as a global endeavour, pairing existing capabilities and tools with an overall ambition for global cooperation and coordination with international partners, to share information and experience. On the operational side, since 2016, EU Space Surveillance and Tracking has provided collision avoidance services to protect satellites and re-entry prediction services to help protect populations and critical infrastructure on Earth, including for non-European users. The Declaration for a sustainable use of outer space for all, signed at the Paris Space Summit on September 9-10 by almost 60 countries, demonstrates a shared commitment to the improvement of space traffic management through the work of COPUOS.

Chair,

10. The EU and its Member States welcome recent discussions within the COPUOS Working Group on Legal Aspects of Space Resource Activities and encourage further work to develop a set of recommended principles. We also welcome the continuation of the discussions on promoting information exchange on space activities under Art. XI OST through the Working Group on the 5 UN Space Treaties. We also welcome the work of the Action Team on Lunar Activities Consultation (ATLAC), an important forum to advance dialogue on the safe, sustainable and coordinated exploration and use of the Moon in a peaceful and transparent manner as well as the other ongoing work streams.

11. The EU remains committed to the Sustainable Development Goals and the Space2030 Agenda, including its objective of promoting inclusiveness and gender equality in space activities. These, complemented by the annual ‘omnibus resolution’ in the General Assembly’s Fourth Committee, provide a framework for ongoing work. The EU Space Programme, with components like GALILEO and COPERNICUS, is crucial in achieving these goals by providing free, open, and reliable data. These programs address challenges related to transport systems, renewable energy, food security, water management, climate change, ocean monitoring, and environmental impact including health, while also supporting disaster management, civil security, and rescue operations to all states. It is a prime example of international cooperation on the peaceful uses of outer space. The EU's Global Gateway strategy supports these efforts, including setting up regional COPERNICUS centres in Panama and Chile and a national data centre in the Philippines. Another landmark EU initiative under this strategy is the Africa-EU Space Partnership Programme, which supports Africa’s space aspirations, as outlined in the African Space Policy.

12. The EU stresses the importance of protecting dark and quiet skies and initiatives aimed at preserving astronomy from low-earth orbit satellite interference as well as the conservation of the pristine night sky.

13. We do not support the draft resolution promoted by Russia since 2025 on “Space science and technology for promoting peace”. This draft resolution duplicates the contribution of the omnibus resolution, traditionally adopted by consensus, while inappropriately introducing further space security issues, which are not suitably addressed in the Fourth Committee under this agenda item. Moreover, introducing a text in the Fourth Committee that failed to convince member states in COPUOS as the competent forum is a circumvention of established working methods.

Thank you.

1. North Macedonia, Montenegro, Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina continue to be part of the Stabilisation and Association Process.