- A draft resolution on the use of WMDs in space by the UN Security Council has been vetoed by Russia.
- Russia voted against it, exercising its veto power and China didn’t vote.
- The proposed amendment demands that all governments take immediate action to stop the stationing of weapons in space
A draft resolution on the use of WMDs in space by the UN Security Council has been vetoed by Russia. Thirteen of the fifteen Security Council members voted in favor of the resolution, which was proposed by the United States and Japan.
Russia voted against it, exercising its veto power. China didn’t vote. Before the vote, the Security Council turned down a Russian and Chinese-proposed modification to the draft resolution that would have prohibited the use of any sort of weaponry in space.
UN Security Council
Vassily Nebenzia, Russia’s permanent ambassador to the UN, charged that Japan and the US were putting on a “dirty spectacle” by introducing the draft resolution.
Nebenzia clarified, saying that the 1967 Outer Space Treaty already forbade the use of WMDs in outer space. The proposed amendment demands that all governments take immediate action to stop the stationing of weapons in space and the threat or use of force there, especially those with significant space capabilities.
The Russian envoy emphasized that the proposed modification just adds a clause making it illegal for any form of weapon to be installed in space; it does not remove the prohibition on doing so.
