Dr. ASLI VAROL
During the Cold War Period, the space race between the USA and the Soviet Union was the most important indicator of the political and technological rivalry of these two countries. After the end of the Cold War era, a new era began in which private companies also took part as non-state actors in the space race. Space studies have become an area of reputation, trade and strategic power for countries and companies in the context of both military and civilian purposes. Therefore, space diplomacy is also rising as a growing field of science diplomacy.
Many countries,
especially the USA, Russia and China, are working on space exploration. Especially recently, the planet Mars has become a
popular area for space exploration. As it is known,
the US reconnaissance vehicle Perseverance was launched from the US Cape
Canaveral Space Station in Florida on June 30, 2020 and managed to land on the
surface of Mars on February 20. The satellite,
developed by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and called “Hope”, was launched from
Japan in July 2020 and reached Mars’ orbit on February 9. The United Arab Emirates has also announced that it
has started to prepare a new space program for discoveries on Venus and 7
planets after Mars.
International Efforts in Space Diplomacy:
United Nations and Europe
The UN’s decision to establish the
Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UNCOPUOS) in 1958 is considered
the beginning of space diplomacy (Polkowska, 2020: 122). The United Nations
Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UNCOPUOS) was established in 1959 and
became a standing committee in 1962. The Committee was established to oversee the exploration and use of space
for the peace, security and development for the benefit of all humanity. The Committee is tasked with
reviewing international cooperation in the peaceful uses of space, examining
space-related activities that can be undertaken by the United Nations,
promoting space exploration programs, and examining legal issues arising from
space exploration. It has two subcommittees,
the Scientific
and Technical Subcommittee (STSC) and the Legal Subcommittee
(LSC), both of which were established in 1961 (United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs, https://www.unoosa.org/oosa/en/ourwork/copuos/index.html).
The European Space Agency (ESA) was established in 1975 for the peaceful exploration and use of space for the benefit of all. European Space Agency, with its 22 Member States, supports Europe’s scientific and industrial interests in space. ESA operates in all aspects of the space industry and brings its benefits to both people and businesses in everyday life. Its Member States work together, sharing financial and scientific resources to achieve the best results. ESA also provides independent access to space for scientific and commercial missions through Europe’s Spaceport in Kourou (European Space Agency, 2021).
Consensus Building for the Peaceful Use of Space
Space diplomacy, as a new type of diplomacy, is responsible for the
control of arms and the maintenance of “peaceful uses of space” (Polkowska, 2020). However,
space diplomacy also should play a role in building global support for the
promotion and dissemination of space studies. Space diplomacy should seek ways
to cooperate in science and technology rather than aggressive space
competition. By means of space diplomacy,
space competition should be prevented from harming space and space should be
protected. Space diplomacy should
encourage the peaceful use of space and ensure consensus on this issue.
Space diplomacy is an important element of security and development for
the international community. Space diplomacy is a type of diplomacy that can
transform the various interests of countries in space into cooperation and
implement practical initiatives for the benefit of all countries concerned (Polkowska,
2020: 123). Space is open to all countries. In other words, space does not
belong to anyone. Everyone has the right to
use space. Therefore, it is necessary to make laws that contain more concrete
principles and sanctions regarding space. For this reason, lobbying and
negotiations for space law within the scope of space diplomacy should be
reinforced.
Space technologies play an important role in monitoring climate change
on the earth. It is stated that the peaceful use of space
contributes to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals. The report, jointly prepared by the
United Nations Office of Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) and the European GNSS
Agency (GSA), explains how European Union space technologies support the SDGs
(United Nations, 2018).
As
it is known, during the Cold War Period, space weapons were produced for
military purposes. It is stated that the production of space weapons
still continues today. Therefore, space diplomacy should emphasize the
termination of production and testing of space weapons with the participation
of military and civilian experts. In addition, the existence of spy satellites
sent to space for military or intelligence purposes is another critical issue
for countries.
In general terms, international
cooperation in space has had an impact on disaster management as well as
scientific research. Initiatives such as the International Charter Space and
Major Disasters demonstrate the concrete effects of space-based technology on
the ground across the world. Similarly, cooperation between China and other
space agencies, such as the European Space Agency, has been successful in the
field of earth observation (Gadd, 2021).
US-Russia Space Cooperation
Although the
space relations between the two superpowers of the Cold War period, the USA and
Russia, have been strained in recent years, continue on a cooperative basis. It has been known since the Cold War Era that Russia
was working on weapons to protect military space stations. It is seen as a worrying situation that Russia not
only produces space weapons, but also aims to send these weapons into space. In 2020, the United States and the UK claimed that
Russia was conducting test studies of space weapons through satellite systems
in space. In response, Russia has stated that these allegations
are part of an information war aimed at discrediting Russia's peaceful attempts
to prevent space activities and an arms race in space. In
this process, it is also noteworthy in terms of space diplomacy that UK called
on Russia to cooperate in the field of space technology. In addition, Russia invites the USA and the UK to
negotiate in the field of space. Therefore,
countries should participate in the space diplomacy process in order to
eliminate the tension between them.
On
the other hand, Russia is also expanding space cooperation with the United
States. It is known that the space cooperation agreement signed between
Russia and the USA in 1992 has been renewed four times so far. Finally, it is stated that Russia has
extended this cooperation agreement in space with the USA until the end of December
2030. In addition, Russia announced in 2021 that
it approved the proposal for expanded cooperation on the exploration and use of
the universe for peaceful purposes.
When the US continuing
cooperation with Russia, it is thought that the fear of losing the leadership
position of the USA is behind the policy of excluding China. The United States
is a leader in space spending and scientific research. In this sense,
cooperation with Russia is also an important facilitating factor (Gadd,
2021). This is an important step in space
diplomacy. Today, space diplomacy should be carried
out on the activities promoting cooperation in space. The way to avoid conflicts in space and to prevent
threatening world security is through the cooperation of states and non-state
actors to benefit from space as stakeholders of our planet.
Space diplomacy shows that despite
the tense bilateral relations between the USA and Russia, the two countries can
cooperate in certain areas. In other words, after the space race between the
USA and Russia, the era of cooperation has opened (Gadd, 2021).
China’s Space Diplomacy
In space
competition, it is understood that China wants to increase its power with space
diplomacy as well as its technological and military activities. China also has ambition to achieve global leadership in the space field.
Experts say
that China is expanding its space program to other countries in a way that
isolates its superpower rival, the United States, in the world. Shenzhou-13,
which carries out Beijing's international space diplomacy plans, was launched
on October 16, 2021 with a team of three people at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch
Center. Beijing-based news site China Daily said the space station would be a “platform
for deeper international cooperation” and a “welcome” to foreign astronauts.
According to experts, China’s outreach to space technologies to other countries has gone
beyond country PR. China is building high-end satellites for developing
countries and sharing satellite data to aid relief efforts after natural
disasters. As of 2008, China has signed space-related cooperation agreements
with Argentina, Brazil, Canada, France, Malaysia, Pakistan, Russia, Ukraine and
the European Commission, NASA said. Last year, Chinese ally Pakistan became the
first full military partner to qualify to use Beijing's BeiDou navigation
satellite (Jennings, 2021).
Space diplomacy
for Mars has been initiated between the USA and China. Because
China has made contacts with NASA for the flight safety of the Tienvin-1
spacecraft sent to Mars.
The China National Space
Administration (CNSA) has confirmed that it has exchanged views with NASA on
the flight safety of spacecraft. However, China’s
space diplomacy is not limited to the USA, it is seen that space diplomacy was
carried out between Latin American countries and China before the meetings with
NASA. China established a satellite ground station in
Patagonia, signed a satellite agreement with Bolivia, and developed close
relations with Venezuela on space issues.
Conclusion
The militarization of space,
telecommunications, the production and testing of space weapons, the protection
of space, the security and defense purposes of countries in space, space exploration,
the use of satellites, the commercialization of space are the leading issues in
space diplomacy. Through space diplomacy, countries should strive to reach
consensus on these issues. In this sense, cooperation and coordination between
national and international space agencies should be ensured, states and private
companies working on space technologies should use their expertise for the
benefit of all humanity.
States,
governments, private companies and scientists and all other relevant
stakeholders should participate in space diplomacy. In other words, space diplomacy should not be seen
only as a field monopolized by states. In this context, multilateral relations should be preferred instead of
bilateral relations in space diplomacy. Because solving the problems on space and reaching an
agreement will only be possible with the participation of all actors.
References
European Space Agency (ESA) (2021):
“This is ESA”, An ESA Production, https://esamultimedia.esa.int/docs/corporate/This_is_ESA_EN_LR.pdf.
Gadd, Adam (2021): “The US Cooperates
With Russia in Space. Why Not China?”, The
Diplomat, September 30, 2021, https://thediplomat.com/2021/09/the-us-cooperates-with-russia-in-space-why-not-china/.
Jennings, Ralph (2021): “In China-US Space Race, Beijing Uses Space Diplomacy, Voice of America, October 25, 2021,
Polkowska, Małgorzata (2020): “Space Diplomacy – Future Perspective”, Humanities and Social Sciences, July-September, vol. XXV, 27 (3/2020), 121-128.
United Nations (2018): “European
Global Navigation Satellite System and Copernicus: supporting the Sustainable
Development Goals - building blocks towards the 2030 Agenda”, United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs, Vienna,
ST/SPACE/71, https://www.unoosa.org/res/oosadoc/data/documents/2018/stspace/stspace71_0_html/st_space_71E.pdf.
United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA), https://www.unoosa.org/oosa/en/ourwork/copuos/index.html [Access:
27.11.2021].
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