The United States and other Western countries increasingly view space as an arena for military offensive operations, noted Vladimir Ermakov, Director of the Department for Nonproliferation and Arms Control of the Russian Foreign Ministry, aimed at domination in space

UN, 10 October. / TASS /. The United States and other Western countries increasingly view space as an arena for military operations, cynically covering up their position with existing international agreements. This is stated in the speech of the Director of the Department for Nonproliferation and Arms Control of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Vladimir Ermakov, at the First Committee of the UN General Assembly, which was read out on Friday by the First Deputy Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation Dmitry Polyansky.

“An extremely destructive role is played by activities aimed at domination, military superiority up to total domination in space,” the diplomat said. He recalled that “in accordance with the doctrinal guidelines of the United States, some other Western countries and NATO in general, outer space is increasingly seen as an arena for conducting military operations, including offensive ones!”

Negotiations on a legally binding agreement to prevent an arms race in outer space are being blocked by the United States, he stated. “At the same time, it is indicative in terms of cynicism that these tasks of conducting military operations in space, including for offensive purposes, are positioned as allegedly in accordance with international law, including the 1967 Outer Space Treaty, aimed at the peaceful use of outer space”,  pointed out the director of the department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation.

“To prevent an arms race in outer space, it is necessary to conclude an appropriate legally binding agreement with the participation of all space-significant states,” Ermakov is sure.  “It must provide for a ban on the deployment of all weapons in space, and a ban on the use of force or threat of force against space objects.”

In this context, an important step is the international initiative and political commitment not to be the first to place weapons in space, the diplomat noted.

He said that Russia is submitting to the United Nations General Assembly, UNGA First Committee draft resolutions on transparency and confidence-building measures in space activities.

SOURCE: https://tass.ru/kosmos/9680827