Secure World Foundation presents at Conference on Disarmament in Geneva, Switzerland

Ben Baseley-Walker, Legal and Policy Advisor for Secure World Foundation, presented on the topic of space security to the Conference on Disarmament (CD) in Geneva, Switzerland today.

The presentation, which served as an overview on space security, helped describe what space security is, what it means in the international context, the role it plays in activities of the CD, and how Secure World Foundation addresses the subject.

Baseley-Walker pointed out that the cornerstones of space security are 1) Securing the long‐term sustainability of critical orbital regions for continued beneficial use and 2) Securing freedom of access to and use of space for socioeconomic benefit for all of humanity. Space security has become more prominent in recent years, and the international community should consider organizational proliferation, legal and policy models, and the international political climate when dealing with the subject in a balanced way.

Space security matters because human space activities, military or civil, the space environment needs to be made sustainable in the long-term. Perhaps the most pressing space security issue today is orbital debris. Orbital debris, as it happens, is an apolitical issue, because it does not discriminate among space assets it damages and whose space services it interrupts. In addition, the importance of space as a tool for emerging space States to provide human security to their people cannot be ignored. Space assets support, for example, border security; water and other Earth resource management; military activities; and disaster warning, management, and relief.

Baseley-Walker argues that space security clearly lies within mandate of the CD, specifically in terms of addressing mitigation of potential threats to the world’s use of space through military activities or other means. The key challenge is that because space is so globalised, it is imperative that ALL space actors are engaged and invested in space security initiatives.

According to Reaching Critical Will, "For the first time, the CD hosted an informal NGO panel, with speakers from WILPF, the Acronym Institute for Disarmament Diplomacy, the Secure World Foundation, and the Geneva Centre for Security Policy. An informative, interactive discussion followed each presentation with a wide variety of delegates participating. While the current CD president Ambassador Jazaïry noted that this would not constitute a precedent, some of the attending delegations said they hoped it would be a precedent. NGOs would certainly welcome future opportunities to engage with the CD in its work."

His presentation can be downloaded here.