IDEAS FOR DEVELOPMENT OF LONG-TERM SUSTAINABILITY OF OUTER SPACE ACTIVITIES: ACTIVE SPACE DEBRIS REMOVAL

In the context of building an international mechanism for the "long-term sustainability of outer space activities" in the UN platform, drafting relevant standards and procedures for active space debris removal was placed onto the agenda. However, prior to addressing the relevant technical requirements, it is important to examine the legal issues of active space debris removal. According to different legal documents and national practices, space debris is still considered to be a "space object" as stated in the Outer Space Treaty, and the active removal of space debris is still regulated within the framework of public international law. The removal of identifiable space debris is not only the right but also the obligation of the country(ies) producing it. Countries that are threatened by identifiable space debris and those that have removal capability are supposed to have the right to remove the debris, subject to confirmation of the danger that the debris poses and the urgency of doing so. As for unidentifiable space debris, when it poses a threat to the common interests of humankind, any state in the international community has the right to remove this debris.