Decolonizing Final Frontier Expansionism? A space Criminological Critique of ESA’s 2019 Space Resources Strategy

Adoption of the US Space Resource Exploration and Utilization Act of 2015 (US Act of 2015) led to setting of diverse legal objectives and issues that are primarily subject to regulation within the framework of the international space law (ISL). The US Act of 2015 defines “space resources” and asteroid resources” as well as creates rights of the US citizens to “possess, own, transport, use and больsell” the obtained space and asteroid resources “in accordance with applicable law, including the international obligations of the United States”. There are objective doubts on the issue that this national law can be directly applied in view of the absence within the framework of ISL of a specific international legal regime of natural resources of the Moon and other celestial bodies. ISL does not contain applicable specific norms and principles nor does it directly prohibit activity on utilization of natural resources as well as other commercial space activities. Moreover, in the absence of such a prohibition, a possible interpretation is that “natural resources not in place” as contrasted to “natural resources in place” (appropriation of this category is prohibited according to the Moon Agreement of 1979) are not subject to the founding principle of non-appropriation of the Moon and other celestial bodies and can be used and appropriated in case of compliance of such activity with corresponding international obligations. Keeping in mind that the actual ISL does not provide a specific international legal regime of the exploration and use of natural resources a conclusion is to be made that the notion of “international obligations” for the purposes of the US Act of 2015 (as well as the comparable Luxembourg draft law of 2016) cannot be fully and clearly understood now. This fact primarily as well as other open issues at the national level impact on the possibility of implementation of this law. Moreover, in view of the NASA Asteroid Redirect Mission more legal issues are to be solved regarding specifically the legal status of asteroids. In this context of help may be definition of the notion “celestial body’ that remains “open” in the ISL. Initiatives on the need of coordination of a specific international legal regime are now presented at diverse levels: at the UNCOPUOS Legal Subcommittee, by The Hague Space Resources Governance Working Group, in doctrine as well as in papers presented at symposiums dedicated to the ISL issues; consideration of this issue seems also possible at the upcoming UNISPACE 50+. It seems also of help to consider the international legal experience of regulation of use of natural resources of other territories beyond the national jurisdiction with corresponding development in accordance with the specific nature of the outer space activities. Norms and principles of a potential specific international legal regime of natural resources of the Moon and other celestial bodies can be coordinated in various forms and at different levels. Of importance is the participation of most subjects of international law and the establishment of such a regime before arising of any related international disputes.

The subject of the research is the system of international legal principles for the use of space resources in the context of modern challenges in the development of commercial space activity. The object of the research consists of international legal relations that arise in the process of applying universal principles of international law, sectoral principles of international space law, and developing specific principles for regulating activities related to the extraction and exploitation of space resources. The study aims to systematize the three-level structure of international legal principles, identify their regulatory potential in the context of gaps in specific international legal regulation, and justify the conceptual foundations of the future international legal regime for space resources. Special attention is given to analyzing attempts to circumvent key principles of international space law through national legislation and regional agreements, as well as developing a system of specific principles that can ensure a balance between commercial interests and the imperatives of the common good of humanity. The methodological basis of the research consists of general scientific methods of cognition, including a systematic approach to analyzing the principles of international law, comparative legal analysis of various approaches to the regulation of space resources, as well as the formal-legal method in studying the content of international legal norms. The scientific novelty of the research is determined by the formation of a concept of a three-level system of international legal principles for the use of space resources and the development of an author's system of specific principles in this area of activity. For the first time, a comprehensive analysis of the applicability of universal principles of international law to the use of space resources has been conducted, revealing systemic violations in contemporary state practice. The concept of functional non-appropriation has been justified as an evolution of the classical prohibition of appropriation with respect to modern forms of space activity. It has been established that contemporary state practice demonstrates attempts to circumvent the principle of non-appropriation by empowering private entities with ownership rights, which contradicts the systemic interpretation of the Outer Space Treaty. Practical mechanisms for implementing specific principles have been proposed, including the establishment of an international body for coordinating and licensing activities. It is concluded that there is a need to form an international legal regime for space resources exclusively within the framework of universal international organizations with the participation of all states parties to the Outer Space Treaty.

This article examines the meaning of the concept of sustainability with respect to space activities, with specific emphasis on the extraction and utilisation of space resources. In particular, the article explores the legal principles that currently regulate and are proposed to regulate space resource activities and how these relate to sustainability as a way of developing our general understanding of sustainability in space. As an Artemis Accords participant, Australia is engaged in international discussions regarding space resource utilisation. Australia will have to consider how it will regulate space resource activities undertaken by Australians. It concludes that the current international space law regime must evolve to ensure that all space activities, including space resource activities, are undertaken in a sustainable manner.

This article examines competing legal frameworks for governing property rights in outer-space resources through a comparative analysis of two distinct approaches: the rule of capture and the concept of usufruct. The increasing interest in commercial space activities, such as mining the Moon and asteroids, has raised questions about the legal frameworks governing property rights in space resources. The growing challenge is that while the Outer Space Treaty (OST) serves as the foundation for space law, it does not explicitly address property rights in the resources humankind increasingly can extract from the space domain. The rule of capture is a legal principle that allows the first individual to take possession of a resource to obtain ownership. While the rule of capture offers a pragmatic solution, its winner-take-all nature potentially undermines the interests of other space actors. The framework may lead to a race for resources and potential conflicts, undermining the OST’s principles of international cooperation and peaceful uses of outer space. Furthermore, the rule of capture may not adequately protect the interests of non-space-faring nations. In contrast, the usufruct theory, which allows individuals to use and enjoy extracted resources without permanently owning the underlying property from which it originates, presents a more balanced approach, reconciling individual resource utilization with the international community’s stake in preserving resources for future generations. By examining the Outer Space Treaty’s provisions on stewardship, peaceful use, and equitable access, this article reveals that states have implicitly adopted a usufruct-based approach to space resource development, as evidenced by its provisions on non-appropriation, free access and use of outer space, stewardship duties, and recognition of state jurisdiction over their space activities. State practice, such as national legislation enacted by Japan, Luxembourg, the United Arab Emirates, and the United States concerning private ownership of extracted space resources, further supports the conceptual integration of usufruct within the OST. However, as commercial space activities expand, the international community must further develop appropriate norms and legal frameworks to balance resource preservation with the economic incentives necessary for responsible space development. It is essential to balance the duty to preserve space resources for future generations with the need to incentivize investment in their development. The concept of usufruct appears to be the most suitable framework for distributing resources from outer space into private hands for the benefit of others. This approach aligns with the OST’s objectives and considers the corresponding interests of all actors in space. However, further legal framework development and international cooperation are needed to responsibly promote commercial expansion and build consensus on the equitable benefit of utilizing space resources for humankind.

Space technology and resources are used around the world to address societal challenges. Space provides valuable satellite services, unique scientific discoveries, surprising technology applications and new economic opportunities. Many developing countries formally recognize the advantages of space resources and pursue national level activity to harness them. There is limited data or documentation on the space activities of developing countries. Meanwhile, traditional approaches to summarize national space activity do not necessarily capture the types of activity that developing countries pursue in space. This is especially true if they do not have a formal national space program or office. Developing countries pursue national space activity through activities of many types—from national satellite programs to commercial use of satellite services to involvement with international space institutions. This research aims to understand and analyze these trends. This paper introduces two analytical frameworks for evaluating space activity at the national level. The frameworks are specifically designed to capture the activity of countries that have traditionally been less involved in space. They take a broad view of space related activity across multiple societal sectors and disciplines. The discussion explains the approach for using the frameworks as well as illustrative examples of how they can be applied as part of a research process. The first framework is called the Mission and Management Ladders. This framework considers specific space projects within countries and ranks them on “Ladders” that measure technical challenge and managerial autonomy. This first method is at a micro level of analysis. The second framework is called the Space Participation Metric (SPM). The SPM can be used to assign a Space Participation score to countries based on their involvement in various space related activities. This second method uses a macro level of analysis. The authors developed both frameworks as part of a long term research program about the space activities of developing countries. This aspect of the research focuses on harnessing multiple techniques to summarize complex, multi-disciplinary information about global space activity.

Resource extraction has been deepened in the new millennium. Global prices for commodities increased to historic heights between 2000 and 2013 driven by Chinese demand and the trading of these commodities in the financial market. The current global recession derived from the COVID-19 pandemic has not meant the reduction of resource extraction but its intensification in national economies to deal with economic crisis. Consequently, new extraction sites are being developed, ecologically sensitive areas are reaching tipping points, environmental disasters proliferate, and millions of people engage in small-scale mining. In this context, should resource governance seek to govern or to overcome the current pattern of extractivism? This chapter seeks to answer this question by discussing the ways resource governance has been conceived as a development strategy. The chapter thus investigates the nature, operation, and governance of resource extraction from classic development theories such as modernization and dependency to critical institutional perspectives and post-extractivist approaches. Then, it focuses on the multi-scalar nature of resource conflicts and their relation to development imaginaries and outcomes. Finally, it reflects on how new commodities and resource frontiers that enlarge the meaning of extractivism impact the way of governing resource extraction.

Space resource exploitation is increasingly becoming feasible, yet current international space law does not provide sufficient legal certainty for such activities. While the outer space treaty (OST) establishes foundational principles, such as the “common interest of mankind,” its provisions remain ambiguous when it comes to resource exploitation. Both the United Nations (UN) and individual States are actively seeking ways to address the legality of space resource utilization. This article argues that the principle of the common interest must guide the evolution of space resource governance. It is not only the basis for other OST principles but also reflects an intrinsic “inner law” governing resource exploitation in global commons. Inner law represents an inherent, objective, and irresistible force that leads the course of historical development, regardless of individual awareness or intention. Under this law, the rule of the jungle does not dictate international relations; zero-sum competition will not persist indefinitely, and mutually beneficial cooperation will ultimately prevail. The regulation of resource exploitation in global commons follows this trajectory, as evidenced by economic theories of managing the commons. China’s “global community with a shared future” concept exemplifies this inner law in policy form, embodying its spirit and principles. Accordingly, it is timely to reaffirm that outer space activities belong to all humankind, and the interests of all nations should be safeguarded, ensuring that every country can participate in, contribute to, and benefit from space activities. To achieve this objective, the committee on the peaceful uses of outer space (COPUOS) should be maintained and strengthened to facilitate international cooperation in the peaceful exploration and use of outer space. Furthermore, countries currently lacking space capabilities should be encouraged to establish or enhance their own space organizations, ensuring equitable access and participation in space activities.

The author considers the problem of international legal regulation of activities on the use of natural resources of space. The results of the analysis of international treaties in the field of space law, resolutions of the UN General Assembly, reports of the Legal Subcommittee of the UN Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space are presented. The methodological basis of the research was made up of general scientific and private scientific methods of cognition (dialectical method, method of analysis and synthesis, induction and deduction, comparative legal and historical legal methods). Currently, there is no universal international legal regulation of the legal status and regime of the use of natural resources of outer space. In order to carry out activities for the extraction of natural resources, it is necessary to develop appropriate international legal norms. In this regard, two alternative positions are being discussed - the concept of the "common heritage of mankind", developed in international maritime law, and the Artemis Agreements proposed by the United States. In the course of the study, the following conclusions were made. The prohibition of national appropriation of outer space and celestial bodies applies to States and individuals. International space law does not explicitly prohibit the use of space for the extraction and commercial exploitation of natural resources. However, natural resources are part of outer space and celestial bodies, respectively, in the absence of special rules governing their legal status and mode of use, the legal regime established in relation to outer space and celestial bodies should be extended to them. There is a tendency to develop a legal regime for the use of natural resources of outer space at the national level with the transition to the international one. The results of the study can be used in the interpretation of the provisions of international space law and the development of international norms concerning the legal status and regime of the use of natural resources of space.

The NASA signed the Artemis Accords on October 13, 2020 with Australia, Canada, Japan, Luxembourg, Italy, the United Kingdom, and the United Arab Emirates. NASA s purpose of this Agreement as stipulated in Section 1 of the Artemis Agreement which is to regulate civilian exploration and the peaceful use of space. It also made clear that it is intended to apply this arrangement to the civil space activities of the State Party. This Accords has great implications for the space industry. This is because space is emerging as a high value-added industry recently, and space activities of private companies are becoming a reality. However, the Artemis Agreement needs to be reviewed within the existing space law system. First, it is necessary to determine what the legal nature of the Artemis Agreement is. This is because the Artemis Accords is in the form of multiple bilateral agreements led by NASA which seems to head toward fragmentation of the space law. Furthermore, it is necessary to review the contents of the Artemis Accords. This is because there are parts that are discussed with novelty, and because the US clearly denies the lunar agreement, it is necessary to review the limitations and issues arising from the space treaty system in relation to civilian space activities. The Artemis Accords is discussed into three main areas here. (1) space security and peaceful use, (2) space resources, and (3) space tourism and the environment. Existing studies of the Artemis Accords seems to emphasize on space resources. However, since there are parts where the progress of international law is differently interpreted in the above three areas, it is necessary to consider the change in space law.

Purpose: the Art. II of the 1967 Outer Space Treaty (OST), which prohibits national appropriation by claim of sovereignty, use or occupation, is a jus cogens norm and has become a guarantee of peace in space, as well as the basis of international space law. In opposition, the creation of national legislations that allow the appropriation of space resources to their citizens, the advance of the private sector in space activities all over the world, the initiative to create the International Lunar Research Station (ILRS), and The Artemis Accords, put the interpretation of this fundamental principle under debate. In the 21st century, the proliferation of new space missions of public-private nature has created feasible commercial opportunities, such as space mining. All of this has deepened the debate within the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UNCOPUOS) on the need (or not) for elaborate new legal definitions and a legal regime for space resources. For this, it’s necessary to generate a unified interpretation by the States based on the "balance of interests" principle. Research methods: study of specialized bibliography and national and international legislations, observation methods and analysis of information related to space activities. Results: in this article it will be evaluated whether it’s possible to establish a new global legal interpretation of Art. II of the OST of 1967 to allow the harmonization of private and public interests. Discussion: the Artemis Accords, the ILRS and the national legislations of States that currently allow their citizens to appropriate space resources are, in fact and in practice, the spearhead of NewSpace and their main characteristic is that they are initiatives carried out outside UNCOPUOS. What would happen if soon, in a hypothetical case, The Artemis Accords and the ILRS project were to have more than a hundred signatory States in total?

In 2020, a general Law on Space Activities was adopted by Luxembourg, following the 2017 Law on Space Resources. Both texts serve as a legal basis for authorizing and supervising space activities of Luxembourg, replacing the system of concessions based on the 1991 Law on Electronic Media. Moreover, the 2020 Law created conditions for the ratification of the 1975 UN Registration Convention by Luxembourg. Space activities, Luxembourg, national legislation, authorization

Work on the content of the law on space activities has been going in Poland for several years. So far, the drafters have not directly referred to the issue of space mining in the content of the proposed legal act. In this context, it is worth asking whether it is valuable and permissible, in terms of international space law and EU law, to regulate in the future (Polish) law on space activity the matter of prospecting, acquiring and using space resources, i.e. so-called space mining. If space mining were regulated in the Polish space law, Poland would not be the first country to do so. The discussed issues have already been regulated in the national space legislation of the USA, Luxemburg, UAE and Japan. This paper will analyze the issues of space mining as expressed in the current drafts of the Polish space law and foreign space legislation, of space mining as a means of achieving various goals and of the compatibility of space mining with international space law and EU law.

The governance of the vast resources of the Solar System will be constrained by the nature and distribution of those resources. We outline these constraints for the Moon, Mars, and the Asteroids. Governance is also historically contingent, and the “Founder Effect” means that our actions in the first few decades of harnessing space resources, mostly on the Moon and the near-Earth asteroids, will have a strong influence on the very different circumstances that will obtain later as our space-based economy grows. We review the nascent efforts to put in place principles and concepts for space resource governance. We present four sets of policy choices that will influence moderate-term, 30-year, developments: governments as anchor customers, governments supporting emerging firms, trade-offs between types of activities, and collective management of crowding and interference. We then describe some ways in which these choices are already being formed. There are two general ethical questions we pose: the “tenure and entitlement” problem, and the “near-term justice” problem. They are not unique to space, but the space examples throw them into high relief. The high cost threshold of space activities suggests that a quasi-monopoly power by a few corporations could well result, leading to evidently unfair treatment of workers within the corporations, and manifestly unjust distribution of the benefits to the wider global society outside the corporations, or an over-rapid exhaustion of those resources to at the cost of future generations.

As human activities expand across Earth orbit, the Moon, and other celestial bodies, the governance of critical space resources has become a pressing issue, exposing persistent gaps in current international regulatory mechanisms. This paper advances a policy-oriented vision for equitable and resilient space governance, grounded in sustainability principles and ethical imperatives. Through the lens of key domains—ranging from spectrum allocation and orbital debris mitigation to planetary surface rights and data governance—it explores how the discourse on space resources reveals deeper challenges for multilateral coordination, institutional leadership and strategic foresight in a multipolar world. The study underscores the need for adaptive international frameworks that align with both technological advancements and shifting geopolitical conditions. It outlines a set of core principles for inclusive governance and advocates for strategic leadership and global partnerships to operationalize this vision. Drawing on the policy outlooks of key global and regional actors—including the European Union, the United Nations system, and leading space policy institutes—it calls for a globally engaged, integrative and forward-looking governance vision for outer space.

Outer Space, an Area Recognised as Res Communis Omnium: Limits of National Space Mining Law