Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
pecially with the participation of countries lacking space capabilities with international or-
ganizations such as Intelsat, Inmarsat, ESA, etc.
However, the most prominent examples of cooperation are efforts in projecting, build-
context, while different forms of cooperation are stipulated among partners (USA, Russia,
ESA, Japan, Canada), based primarily on the Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA - Agree-
ment among the Government of Canada, Governments of Member States of the European
Space Agency, the Government of Japan, the Government of the Russian Federation, and
the Government of the United States of America Concerning Cooperation on the Civil In-
ternational Space Station, 29 January 1998, entered into force on 28 March 2001), they do
not envisage any form of cooperation with developing countries.
The Declaration on International Cooperation in the Exploration and Use of Outer
Space for the Benefit and in the Interest of All States, Taking into Particular Account the
Needs of Developing Countries, adopted by the General Assembly in 1996 (Resolution 51/
122 of 13 December, 1996) draws some guidelines for fostering cooperation programmes
between states with space capabilities and those without. This Resolution, issued at the
end of long discussions, is based, fundamentally, on two considerations according to which
states are free to determine their cooperation and to choose the most efficient and appropri-
ate means of collaboration in the scientific, technological, and economic fields.
The International Code of Conduct of Outer Space Activities (CoC), adopted by the
EU Council in 2008 (European Council Doc. 17175/08, Council Conclusions and Draft
Code of Conduct for Outer Space Activities, 17 December 2008, Annex II) and currently
underway at the international level, which - although it was born in a different context -
can be considered as the development of the basic principles established in the OST, ex-
pressly mentions among the freedoms, the access to space: any other freedom in space
Unlike UNCLOS, which includes 'exploration' and 'exploitation' of the area under
part XI, and establishes a separate regime for scientific research, which falls under Article
143, the OST does not provide any definition of the terms 'exploration' and 'use'. As a
