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UNITED
NATIONS
General Assembly
Distr.
GENERAL
A/RES/53/76
4 January 1999
Fifty-third session
Agenda item 70
RESOLUTION ADOPTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY
[on the report of the First Committee (A/53/583)]
53/76. Prevention of an arms race in outer space
The General Assembly,
Recognizing the common interest of all mankind in the exploration and
use of outer space for peaceful purposes,
Reaffirming the will of all States that the exploration and use of
outer space, including the Moon and other celestial bodies, shall be for
peaceful purposes and shall be carried out for the benefit and in the
interest of all countries, irrespective of their degree of economic or
scientific development,
Reaffirming also the provisions of articles III and IV of the Treaty
on Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and
Use of Outer Space, including the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies, 1/
Recalling the obligation of all States to observe the provisions of
the Charter of the United Nations regarding the use or threat of use of
force in their international relations, including in their space
activities,
Reaffirming paragraph 80 of the Final Document of the Tenth Special
Session of the General Assembly, 2/ in which it is stated that in order
to prevent an arms race in outer space further measures should be taken
and appropriate international negotiations held in accordance with the
spirit of the Treaty,
Recalling its previous resolutions on this issue, and taking note of
the proposals submitted to the General Assembly at its tenth special
session and at its regular sessions, and of the recommendations made to
the competent organs of the United Nations and to the Conference on
Disarmament,
Recognizing that prevention of an arms race in outer space would avert
a grave danger for international peace and security,
Emphasizing the paramount importance of strict compliance with
existing arms limitation and disarmament agreements relevant to outer
space, including bilateral agreements, and with the existing legal regime
concerning the use of outer space,
Considering that wide participation in the legal regime applicable to
outer space could contribute to enhancing its effectiveness,
Noting that the Ad Hoc Committee on the Prevention of an Arms Race in
Outer Space, taking into account its previous efforts since its
establishment in 1985 and seeking to enhance its functioning in
qualitative terms, continued the examination and identification of
various issues, existing agreements and existing proposals, as well as
future initiatives relevant to the prevention of an arms race in outer
space, 3/ and that this contributed to a better understanding of a
number of problems and to a clearer perception of the various positions,
Noting also that there were no objections in principle in the
Conference on Disarmament during its 1997 session to the re-establishment
of the Ad Hoc Committee, subject to re-examination of the mandate
contained in the decision of the Conference on Disarmament of 13 February
1992, 4/
Emphasizing the mutually complementary nature of bilateral and
multilateral efforts in the field of preventing an arms race in outer
space, and hoping that concrete results will emerge from those efforts
as soon as possible,
Convinced that further measures should be examined in the search for
effective and verifiable bilateral and multilateral agreements in order
to prevent an arms race in outer space, including the weaponization of
outer space,
Stressing that the growing use of outer space increases the need for
greater transparency and better information on the part of the
international community,
Recalling in this context its previous resolutions, in particular
resolutions 45/55 B of 4 December 1990, 47/51 of 9 December 1992 and
48/74 A of 16 December 1993, in which, inter alia, it reaffirmed the
importance of confidence-building measures as means conducive to ensuring
the attainment of the objective of the prevention of an arms race in
outer space,
Conscious of the benefits of confidence- and security-building
measures in the military field,
Recognizing that negotiations for the conclusion of an international
agreement or agreements to prevent an arms race in outer space remain a
priority task of the Ad Hoc Committee and that the concrete proposals on
confidence-building measures could form an integral part of such
agreements,
1. Reaffirms the importance and urgency of preventing an arms race in
outer space, and the readiness of all States to contribute to that common
objective, in conformity with the provisions of the Treaty on Principles
Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of Outer
Space, including the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies; 1/
2. Reaffirms its recognition, as stated in the report of the Ad Hoc
Committee on the Prevention of an Arms Race in Outer Space, that the
legal regime applicable to outer space by itself does not guarantee the
prevention of an arms race in outer space, that this legal regime plays
a significant role in the prevention of an arms race in that environment,
that there is a need to consolidate and reinforce that regime and enhance
its effectiveness, and that it is important strictly to comply with
existing agreements, both bilateral and multilateral;
3. Emphasizes the necessity of further measures with appropriate and
effective provisions for verification to prevent an arms race in outer
space;
4. Calls upon all States, in particular those with major space
capabilities, to contribute actively to the objective of the peaceful use
of outer space and of the prevention of an arms race in outer space and
to refrain from actions contrary to that objective and to the relevant
existing treaties in the interest of maintaining international peace and
security and promoting international cooperation;
5. Reiterates that the Conference on Disarmament, as the single
multilateral disarmament negotiating forum, has the primary role in the
negotiation of a multilateral agreement or agreements, as appropriate,
on the prevention of an arms race in outer space in all its aspects;
6. Invites the Conference on Disarmament to finalize the examination
of the mandate contained in its decision of 13 February 1992, 4/ with a
view to updating it as appropriate, thus providing for the re-
establishment of the Ad Hoc Committee during the 1999 session of the
Conference on Disarmament;
7. Recognizes, in this respect, the growing convergence of views on
the elaboration of measures designed to strengthen transparency,
confidence and security in the peaceful uses of outer space;
8. Urges States conducting activities in outer space, as well as
States interested in conducting such activities, to keep the Conference
on Disarmament informed of the progress of bilateral and multilateral
negotiations on the matter, if any, so as to facilitate its work;
9. Decides to include in the provisional agenda of its fifty-fourth
session the item entitled "Prevention of an arms race in outer space".
79th plenary meeting
4 December 1998
Notes
1/ Resolution 2222 (XXI), annex.
2/ Resolution S-10/2.
3/ Official Records of the General Assembly, Forty-ninth Session,
Supplement No. 27 (A/49/27), sect. III.D (para. 5 of the quoted text).
4/ CD/1125.
.