International Trade Regulations for Space Launching Services
- Paper number
IAC-06-E6.1.05
- Author
Ms. Sagee Geetha Sasikumar, University College Dublin, Ireland
- Year
2006
- Abstract
Although, space activities in many countries are State run, many of the space capacity countries are now exploiting the commercial capabilities of space. Commercialisation of the space sector is posing problems for its national and international trade and its regulations. Are the free market, free competition concepts, which now rule international trade, applicable mutatis mutandis to trade in Space Launch Services?
This paper attempts to interpret the regulations in the launch services in the light of the GATS and GATT principles and whether the WTO should be made applicable to the space launching services. The WTO covers trade both in goods, viz. General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT); and services, viz. General Agreement on Trade in Services(GATS). Even though air transport services and maritime transport services are expressly dealt with under the GATS provision, launch services do not find mention in any of the agreement of the WTO. However, Space launch services are "services", and hence could be brought within the ambit of GATS. On the other hand, government subsidies for the development of launch vehicles and satellites are covered by the GATT. But in the absence of any specific provisions in the WTO as well as the reluctance of many of the space faring nations to include it within the WTO regime, the national legislations and the space policies of such countries should also be looked into in order to assimilate state practices with regard to the regulations in launching services. An analysis is also made on the several bilateral treaties entered into between the states for regulating their space launches. Finally, the paper also looks into the international law principles of state soveignity and national security and the difficulty it poses in regulating space launching services by the WTO.
- Abstract document