Topic:
Country: Morocco
Delegate Name: Lukian Fific
UN Disarmament & International Security
Militarization of Outer Space
Kingdom of Morocco
Lukian Fifić
The Kingdom of Morocco is dedicated to protecting the peaceful use of outer space.
As a nation that participates in utilizing outer space as a resource, it is against our interests, as well as the world’s, for conflict to arise in outer space. Being among the most active African countries on the Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space since 1961 as well as the only one to ratify all five core outer space treaties, the Kingdom of Morocco stands as a noble contributor to the preservation of peace in outer space.
The Kingdom of Morocco has supported and ratified all five core outer space treaties, and it is the only African country to do so. The five core outer space treaties are a collection of treaties that address issues such as arms control, appropriation by a single country, freedom for exploration and scientific endeavor, and exploitation of natural resources. The treaties are named as follows: the “Outer Space Treaty”, the “Rescue Agreement, the “Liability Convention”, the “Registration Convention” and the “Moon Agreement”. Morocco has also authored a draft resolution titled “The Prevention of An Arms Race in Outer Space” along with countries such as Mexico, Egypt, and India in 1982. This resolution aimed to prohibit the stationing of any kind of weapons in outer space. Finally, Morocco appeared as an additional sponsor in a draft resolution titled “No First Placement of Weapons in Outer Space” alongside countries such as the Russian Federation, China, and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea in 2016, which aimed to avert the threat of an arms race by taking practical measures to prohibit weapons in space.
Indicated by its participation in the aforementioned treaties and resolutions, the Kingdom of Morocco shows great concern for the possibility of militarization in outer space, and as such its position on this issue is one of peace and demilitarization. Morocco has supported multiple resolutions that aimed to prohibit stationing weapons in space as well as the treaties that set rules regarding how a nation may utilize space equally with all other nations. The Kingdom of Morocco believes that space is a valuable resource, both in the field of science as well as in war, and as such must be protected from those who wish to do it harm, or to do harm through it.
