Abstract
As a forum for discussing international approaches to global challenges, the United Nations (UN) attaches great importance to space security. While no single venue addresses all aspects of space security, multiple UN bodies have become essential multilateral fora for discussing these issues. Against this backdrop, this chapter offers a definition of space security that reflects the different connotations with which this term is used within various UN entities. It then reviews and analyzes the role that relevant UN bodies and fora play in the international discourse on space security, with particular regard to the work being made within both international security (UNGA 1st Committee, CD, UNDC, UNODA, UNIDIR) and space (UNGA 4th Committee, COPUOS, UNOOSA) settings of the UN. The chapter concludes that the diverse initiatives discussed within the different UN entities indicate the increasing pressures facing the international community in addressing all aspects of space security; that substantial differences still exist among states over priorities, methodologies, mechanisms, and settings to tackle key space security challenges; and that the existence of political will that accommodates, rather than eliminates, these differences can prove effective in finding common ground for shared action.
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Further Readings
Brachet G (2007) Collective security in space: a key factor for sustainable long-term use of space. In: Logsdon J et al (eds) Collective security in space: European perspectives. Space Policy Institute, Elliott School of International Affairs, The George Washington University, Washington, DC
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Rajagopalan RP (2018) Space governance. Oxford research encyclopedia of planetary science. https://doi.org/10.1093/acrefore/9780190647926.013.107. Accessed 31 Aug 2019
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Pellegrino, M. (2020). Views on Space Security in the United Nations. In: Handbook of Space Security. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-22786-9_76-2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-22786-9_76-2
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Views on Space Security in the United Nations- Published:
- 24 June 2020
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-22786-9_76-2
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Views on Space Security in the United Nations- Published:
- 31 July 2019
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-22786-9_76-1