Russian state space corporation Roscosmos on Thursday expressed its concern over the aspiration of some Western nations to turn space into a potential battlefield after a Moscow-drafted resolution on weapons-free outer space had failed in the UN Security Council.
"The intention of a number of Western states to turn space into a potential battlefield is of particular concern," Roscosmos head Yuri Borisov said at a meeting of the BRICS heads of space agencies.
In early May, Russia proposed a draft UN Security Council resolution calling on all countries to take urgent actions to prevent the use of space for weapons deployment.
The document also called for steps that would prevent the use of force in space, from space toward Earth, and from Earth against objects in outer space.
On Monday, the UN Security Council rejected the resolution in a vote. Russia, China, Algeria, Guyana, Ecuador, Mozambique, and Sierra Leone voted for the resolution, while the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Japan, Slovenia, South Korea, and Malta voted against. Switzerland abstained.
Russia Open to Nuclear-Tug-Powered Space Mission With BRICS Partners
Roscosmos is open to the realization of a scientific mission in deep space using a nuclear tug together with BRICS partners, Roscosmos executive director Aleksandr Bloshenko said on Thursday.
"Russia continues to work on ensuring the next step in the deep space exploration … We are also open to the joint realization of a scientific mission in deep space with our BRICS partners," Bloshenko said.
Deep space travel will require a completely different level of energy supply and the creation of megawatt-class space tugs, that Roscosmos is currently working on, the corporation's executive director also said.
The module may be used for "energy-intensive scientific research in the Jupiter system," and for fending off asteroid threats, Bloshenko added.
Meanwhile, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said that it was necessary to incorporate new BRICS member states into the organization's joint cooperation project on Earth remote sensing satellites.
BRICS was established in 2009 as a cooperation platform for the world's largest emerging economies, bringing together Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. On January 1, 2024, the bloc expanded to include Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, and the United Arab Emirates.