Andrei Kartapolov: “We must prevent weapons launching into space”

At the second meeting of the Chairpersons of the CSTO Parliamentary Committees on International Affairs, Defence and Security on February 1 in Moscow, Andrei Kartapolov, Chairman of the Russian State Duma Committee on Defence, proposed to discuss “prevention of an arms race in outer space.”

"At present, the political and military situation in the world remains complicated and international security is facing serious challenges. We can see how tensions are getting higher because of the US insistence on world leadership and more and more states gravitating into the orbit of its foreign and military policy. Mechanisms of maintaining international security and strategic stability are being unceremoniously destroyed for the sake of gaining unlimited opportunities to exert military and political pressure on opponents,” Mr Kartapolov said.

He also noted that amid probable further escalation of the international crisis and potential arms race it is possible that outer space could be the next arena for geopolitical rivalry and armed be, which is why one of the most important aspects of international policy, according to Chairman of the Defense Committee, is to prevent space from turning into a launching pad for aggression and war.

“Collective efforts are required at this time. Approaches and new multilateral agreements which correspond to the present-day realities should be worked out. Russia has consistently advocated the joint development of a legally binding international treaty containing reliable guarantees against the deployment of weapons in space,” Mr Kartapolov said.

A participant of the meeting voiced the position of the Defence Committee, which is ready to actively contribute to the efforts of the international community to keep outer space free of weapons of any kind.