Opposing deployment of weapons in space

At the end of the summit of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), held in Dushanbe in 2021, its participants adopted a final declaration to oppose the “space” arms race. The members of the Collective Security Council want to consolidate the provision on the non-deployment of weapons in outer space in an appropriate document in international law. It is proposed to take as its basis a draft agreement between the Russian Federation and the Peoples Republic of China (PRC), in which the parties agree to abandon the use of outer space for military purposes, the use of force on the spacecraft of other states or its threat. CSTO member states also intend to collectively initiate at the international level a commitment not to be the first to deploy weapons in space. They oppose the buildup of military force in space and for its exclusively peaceful use. The declaration states that the CSTO countries “will continue joint efforts to prevent an arms race in outer space and to preserve it for peaceful purposes”.