Russian President Vladimir Putin, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi call for legal binding tool to prevent all weapons in spac

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi have voiced their concerns over a potential arms race in outer space, according to their joint statement after a bilateral summit on Wednesday, TASS reported Sept 4, 2019.

Both are concerned that this possible arms race could eventually turn space into an arena of military confrontation, the document said. The two leaders confirmed that the prevention of an arms race in outer space would help prevent a serious threat to international peace and security. Moreover, they announced their intentions to continue further efforts in this direction.

Putin and Modi pointed out the paramount importance of fully observing international and legal agreements, stipulating that outer space should be used only for peaceful objectives, including for maintaining international peace and stability, as well as developing international cooperation and mutual understanding.

Russia and India called for introducing a legally binding multilateral instrument, providing guarantees of non-deployment of any types of weapons at low-Earth orbit. They also confirmed that the Conference on Disarmament is the only forum for holding multilateral talks devoted to international cooperation on preventing an arms race in outer space in all its aspects.

According to their official statement, the sides reached an agreement that universal, non-discriminatory measures for transparency and building confidence may supplement a legally binding tool on preventing an arms race in outer space.