The Future of the Outer Space Treaty – Peace and Security in the 21st Century
Jonathan Lim
Global Politics Review
Vol. 4, no. 2 (October 2018): 72-112.
DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.1481736
GPR ID: 2464-9929_v04_i02_p072
Received: August 12, 2018. Accepted: October 13, 2018. Published: October 31, 2018.
ABSTRACT: This paper analyses the ongoing debate surrounding proposed amendments to the 1967 Outer Space Treaty. The paper aims to outline the multiplicity of suggested amendments and practically reconcile them with the developing geopolitical climate and international legal principles. It assesses the several key aspects of the OST which remain in contention; addressing the economic, national security, and environmental concerns through a holistic approach, considering the relevant articles of the OST and how these articles have been interpreted. It finds that growing access to resources and militarization makes cooperation on certain issues impractical, and that the adoption of transparency and confidence-building measures, coupled with the independent development of opinion juris by subordinate IGOs, represents the most viable opportunity for amendments to be incrementally instituted by consensus. The adoption of transparency and confidence-building measures will facilitate mutual trust and understanding between UN members, reinforce the rule of law, and preclude the possibility of competition and conflict in outer space. This analysis provides an updated insight into developments within international law jurisprudence, and represents an exhaustive record of proposed OST amendments..
Keywords: Space Law, Outer Space Treaty, Arms Race, Space Mining, Space Environment, Diplomacy.
Copyright by the Author. This is an Open Access article licensed by Global Politics Review under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 License 
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