U.S. OFFICIAL STATEMENT TO UNITED NATIONS DISARMAMENT COMMISSION

FROM U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Statement by Mr. John A. Bravaco, U.S. Representative United Nations Disarmament Commission 2012 Session
Mr. John A. Bravaco, U.S. Representative United Nations Disarmament Commission New York, NY April 4, 2012
AS DELIVERED
Thank you, Mr. Ambassador. Good afternoon everyone.
On behalf of the United States Delegation, let me congratulate Peru on its election to the Chairmanship of the 2012 session of the UN Disarmament Commission. It is my great pleasure to be working with you again, sir. You may count on the full support of the United States as you fulfill your important responsibilities.

We also congratulate the other members of the Commission's Bureau for their elections. And we warmly welcome the new High Representative for Disarmament, Ms. Angela Kane, and express our gratitude for the contributions of the previous High Representative, Sergio Duarte.

Mr. Chairman, as you know, the Disarmament Commission is meeting on the eve of the first Preparatory Committee meeting for the 2015 Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference (NPT). Please allow me to touch on some of the activities, achievements, and commitments of the United States in the field of arms control, nonproliferation, and disarmament.

The NPT is the Cornerstone
Mr. Chairman, in the forty-two years since the NPT entered into force it has become the most widely adhered to nonproliferation and disarmament agreement the world has ever known. As U.S. President Barack Obama said on April 5, 2009 in Prague: “The basic bargain is sound: Countries with nuclear weapons will move towards disarmament, countries without nuclear weapons will not acquire them, and all countries can access peaceful nuclear energy.” Working together at the 2010 NPT Review Conference, States Party achieved agreement on an ambitious and forward-looking Action Plan across all three pillars of the NPT. As the 2015 Review Process begins, the United States looks forward to working with its NPT partners to strengthen implementation of all aspects of the Treaty and the international nuclear nonproliferation regime.

New START and Beyond
Two agreements between the United States and the Russian Federation that came into force last year serve as essential evidence of the United States’ commitment to seek the peace and security of a world without nuclear weapons. The U.S.-Russia Plutonium Management and Disposition Agreement will result in the disposal of enough weapons-grade plutonium for many thousands of nuclear weapons. And the New START Treaty, the implementation of which is now well underway, will, we anticipate, set the stage for the pursuit of a future agreement with Russia for broad reductions in all categories of nuclear weapons – strategic, non-strategic, deployed and non-deployed. As we consider next steps, close consultations with Russia, as well as our allies, will remain essential.

P5 Transparency and Confidence Building on Nuclear Disarmament
Mr. Chairman, Action 5 of the 2010 NPT Review Conference Final Document Action Plan calls on the Nuclear Weapons States to engage on further reducing nuclear weapons and diminishing their role, reducing the risk of nuclear war, and enhancing transparency and mutual confidence. Building on the NPT RevCon and the engagement initiated at the 2009 London and 2011 Paris conferences, the P5 have continued discussions on these and other nonproliferation and disarmament issues, including reporting by the P5 to other NPT Parties on disarmament-related matters. This process continues. The United Kingdom hosted just today a P5 verification working group, as agreed at last year’s Paris P5 Conference. And this summer, the United States is pleased to be hosting the next P5 verification, transparency, and confidence building conference in Washington, DC.

Fissile Material Cutoff Treaty
Mr. Chairman, a Fissile Material Cutoff Treaty (FMCT) remains an absolutely essential step on the path to global nuclear disarmament, one repeatedly endorsed by the international community. The reality of the situation is simply this: the longer an effectively verifiable FMCT is delayed, or more accurately, denied, the longer a world free of nuclear weapons will remain out of reach.
For this reason, we regret that the Conference on Disarmament (CD) did not agree to the recent compromise Program of Work that would have advanced efforts toward an FMCT, along with serious work on other important issues. We are disappointed at this lost opportunity, but appreciate the vigorous efforts of Egypt and the other “P-6” CD Presidency countries to move this issue forward. We are currently consulting with our P5 partners and others on the most appropriate next steps for an FMCT.

Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty
The United States also remains committed to the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) as another critical element of the nuclear disarmament process. The Administration is continuing its engagement with the United States Senate and the American public on the merits of the Treaty. As we move forward with our efforts to promote ratification, we call on all governments to declare or reaffirm their commitments not to conduct nuclear explosive tests. We thank and congratulate Ghana, Guatemala, Guinea, and Indonesia for their recent ratifications of the Treaty. And we ask all the remaining States required for the Treaty’s entry into force to join us in moving toward ratification.

Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zones
Mr. Chairman, over the last several years, the United States has reinvigorated its efforts to support nuclear-weapon-free zone treaties as an important part of the multilateral arms control and nonproliferation architecture. On May 2, 2011, the Administration transmitted the relevant Protocols of the African and South Pacific Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone Treaties to the U.S. Senate for its advice and consent to ratification. Also last year, the Nuclear Weapon States and the states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations resolved long standing differences related to the South East Asian Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone’s Protocol language. Upon completion of some procedural steps, we hope to be able to sign the Protocol to the Southeast Asian zone treaty this year. Regarding the Treaty of Semipalatinsk in Central Asia, we have had preliminary discussions with Kazakhstan and our P5 partners to consider ways to address outstanding issues. And, along with the other NPT depositary states, we strongly support the efforts of Finnish Under Secretary Jaako Laajava, the facilitator for the Middle East Weapons of Mass Destruction Free Zone Conference.

Outer Space
Mr. Chairman in an effort to strengthen the long-term sustainability, stability, safety, and security of space, the United States earlier this year announced its decision to formally work with the European Union and spacefaring nations to develop and advance an “International Code of Conduct for Outer Space Activities.” The European Union’s draft Code of Conduct is a good foundation for the development of a non-legally binding International Code of Conduct, which, if adopted, would establish guidelines for responsible behavior to reduce the hazards of debris-generating events and increase the transparency of operations in space to avoid the danger of collisions. We also look forward to practical work in the UN’s Group of Governmental Experts (GGE) on outer space transparency and confidence-building measures that is scheduled to begin this summer.

The UNDC’S Agenda
Mr. Chairman, as we work to finalize agreement on the Commission’s agenda for the 2012-2014 issue cycle, please allow me to express my confidence in your ability to foster a compromise that takes account of the views of all delegations.
Conclusion
Once our agenda is agreed, the United States looks forward to addressing the issues before the Commission in the coming years, and will do its part to facilitate a positive outcome.
Mr. Chairman, this statement will be made available on the website of the U.S. Mission to the United Nations.
Thank you for your attention.

SPACE: THE STABLE ENVIRONMENT FRONTIER

The following excerpt is from the U.S. State Department website:
Laying the Groundwork for a Stable and Sustainable Space Environment
Remarks Frank A. Rose
Deputy Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Arms Control, Verification and Compliance United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research, Space Security Conference
Geneva, Switzerland
March 29, 2012
Thank you for the kind introduction. It is my pleasure to be back in Geneva, speaking at what has become one of my favorite conferences to discuss space security. This year’s theme, “Laying the Groundwork for Progress,” seems to me to be particularly fitting when we consider the efforts that have been, and will be, underway this year to ensure the long-term sustainability, stability, safety, and security of the space environment.

Before I discuss the approaches towards ensuring space security that we can and are taking today, I’d like to look at how we are using space today and consider the consequences of a future without access to space. Today, several nations use communications satellites to enable health services for remote segments of their populations. Dubbed “telehealth,” the satellite link provides patients with access to the medical knowledge and experience necessary to diagnose conditions and prescribe treatment. For example, Burkina Faso, one of several West African nations using telehealth, relies upon donated transponder time to transmit abnormal ultrasound images from village clinics to specialists in a few regional hospitals. Communication satellites have a direct impact on Burkina Faso’s women and children, and the loss of this service could greatly affect the country’s ability to meet its health care delivery needs.

The use of communications satellites to transmit health care data across countries and across the globe is only one of the many uses of space on which we rely. Telephone calls, news reports, television broadcasts, and financial transactions are also relayed through satellites. Financial markets, power grids, and wireless, satellite, cable, and broadcast industries all use GPS satellites for precise timing, and ships, planes, automobiles, and individual people use them for navigation. Meteorological satellites provide weather and environmental forecasts, while remote-sensing satellites provide imagery used in agriculture, resource exploration, land use planning, treaty verification, and disaster relief, amongst other things. Clearly the use of space assets and the information we derive from them permeate almost every aspect of our daily lives. The telehealth scenario I have just mentioned is only one example of how important the utilization of space is, and clearly shows that the loss of space systems, even for a short period of time, can have damaging consequences. Extrapolating from this, we must ask ourselves “What will the consequences be if the space environment were to become unusable?”

Recognizing the need to prevent such a future, and to ensure the long-term sustainability and stability of the space environment, the question becomes “What can we do today to ensure that the generations that come after us can access and benefit from space?” I’m sure that each speaker on this panel, and probably in this conference, would answer this question slightly, if not very, differently. Some of us would suggest we pursue legally-binding arms control agreements. While the United States is prepared to engage in substantive discussions on space security as part of a Conference on Disarmament’s consensus program of work, and is willing to “consider” space arms control proposals and concepts that are equitable, effectively verifiable, and enhance the national security of the United States and our allies, we have not yet seen a proposal that meets these criteria. However, it is important to focus on those areas that unite us rather than divide us. While each speaker may have differing views on how to best ensure stability and security in space, there are many ways forward in which we do agree. It is in those areas, I believe, we should focus on making progress in the near term.

Orbital Debris Mitigation
Considering the serious and long-lasting threat posed by orbital debris, I think we can all agree that cooperation is necessary to address and mitigate this growing problem. The fact was illustrated by events this past weekend, when the astronauts on the International Space Station were forced to take shelter when a piece of debris came close to the station. Had that debris collided with the space station, it could have caused catastrophic damage to the station and placed the lives of the crew at serious risk.

In 2002, international guidelines to minimize debris were established by the Inter-Agency Space Debris Coordination Committee. These guidelines served as the basis for similar guidelines then adopted by the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS) and endorsed by the United Nations General Assembly. It is important that we continue to make progress in encouraging nations to adopt and implement these guidelines.

From a national perspective, we in the United States also recognize the importance of preventing collisions between satellites and/or orbiting objects, due to the resulting debris creation. The United States is currently reaching out to all space-faring nations and organizations to ensure that our Joint Space Operations Center, or JSpOC, has current contact information for both government and private sector satellite operations centers to provide notifications of potentially hazardous conjunctions. In 2011 alone, we provided over 1,100 notifications to nations around the world, including Russia and China.

UNCOPUOS
We can also all agree that there is great value in efforts to adopt best practice guidelines through “bottom-up” initiatives developed by government and private sector satellite operators, such as the work done in the multi-year study of “long-term sustainability of space activities” within the Scientific and Technical Subcommittee (STSC) of UNCOPUOS. The STSC Working Group on the Long-Term Sustainability of Outer Space Activities is a key forum focusing on the international development of “best practices guidelines” for space activities, in particular in the areas of space debris, space operations, and space situational awareness. The United States believes that many of the best practice guidelines addressed by this working group will be integral to international efforts to enhance spaceflight safety and to preserve the use of space for the long-term.

Transparency and Confidence-Building Measures
Finally, we can all agree that the development of near-term, voluntary, and pragmatic space transparency and confidence-building measures can enhance the stability and security of the space environment. TCBMs, whether they address important areas such as hazards to spaceflight safety and collision avoidance, or reduce tensions through the sharing of information, help to increase familiarity and trust and encourage openness among space actors. One opportunity for the international community to cooperate in this area is through the Group of Government Experts (or GGE) on Outer Space TCBMs, established by UN General Assembly Resolution 65/68. We look forward to working with our international colleagues this year in a GGE that serves as a constructive mechanism to examine voluntary and pragmatic TCBMs that have the potential to mitigate the dangers and risks in an increasingly contested and congested space environment, enhance stability and security, and promote responsible operations in space.

Another opportunity for the international community to cooperate on TCBMs is through the development and adoption of an “International Code of Conduct for Outer Space Activities.” As many of you are aware, on January 17, 2012, the United States announced that it had decided to join with the European Union and other spacefaring nations to develop an International Code of Conduct.

In her written statement announcing the decision, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said, “the long-term sustainability of our space environment is at serious risk from space debris and irresponsible actors … Unless the international community addresses these challenges, the environment around our planet will become increasingly hazardous to human spaceflight and satellite systems, which would create damaging consequences for all of us.”

We were pleased that Japan, Australia, and other countries have also stated their support for the development of a Code of Conduct, and we encourage other spacefaring nations to consider playing an active role in the multilateral meetings of experts in 2012 that the European Union intends to schedule. We view the European Union’s draft Code of Conduct as a good foundation for developing a non-legally binding International Code focused on the use of voluntary and pragmatic TCBMs. An International Code of Conduct, if adopted, would establish a political commitment to reduce the hazards of accidental and purposeful debris-generating events and would increase the transparency of operations in space to minimize the danger of collisions, furthering cooperation in areas we all recognize as crucial for ensuring stability and sustainability in space. We look forward to engaging with the rest of the international community on this initiative in the months to come.

Looking Towards the Future
The world is increasingly interconnected through, and increasingly dependent on space systems. While there is no way of knowing when, or if, we will reach a “tipping point” when it comes to debris and our access to space, it is clear that the long-term sustainability of our space environment is at serious risk from space debris and irresponsible actors. Because of our disparate histories and situations, there will always be differing views on how to best ensure stability and sustainability in space. We should not focus on what divides us, but instead on those efforts we can agree to now that will lay the groundwork for progress and sustain space for future generations.

U.S. CONTINUES TO CALL FOR INTERNATIONAL CODE OF CONDUCT IN SPACE

The following excerpt is from a U.S. State Department e-mail:

An International Code of Conduct for Outer Space Activities: Strengthening Long-Term Sustainability, Stability, Safety, and Security in Space
Fact Sheet
Bureau of Public Affairs
January 17, 2012
"The United States…calls on all nations to work together to adopt approaches for responsible activity in space to preserve this right for the benefit of future generations." –

President Barack Obama, National Space Policy, June 28, 2010
Benefits of Space Systems
Space is vital to protecting U.S. economic prosperity and the national security interests of the United States, its allies, and partners. The benefits derived from space-based systems permeate almost every aspect of our daily life. The utilization of space helps by: warning of natural disasters; facilitating navigation and transportation globally; expanding our scientific frontiers; providing national decision makers with global communications, command, and control; monitoring strategic and military developments as well as supporting treaty monitoring and arms control verification; providing global access to financial operations; and scores of other activities worldwide. However, space, a domain that no nation owns but on which all rely, is becoming increasingly congested and contested.

Space Congestion
Today there are approximately 60 nations and government consortia that operate satellites, as well as numerous commercial and academic satellite operators, creating an environment that is increasingly congested. The Department of Defense tracks roughly 22,000 objects in orbit, of which 1,100 are active satellites. There are hundreds of thousands of additional objects too small to track but still capable of damaging satellites in orbit and the International Space Station. We need to work with the international community to address hazards and concerns that have arisen from this increasingly congested space environment.

Threats to Space
The threats to the space environment will increase as more nations and non-state actors develop and deploy counter-space systems. Today space systems and their supporting infrastructure face a range of man-made threats that may deny, degrade, deceive, disrupt, or destroy assets. Irresponsible acts against space systems will have implications beyond the space environment, disrupting worldwide services upon which civil, commercial, and national security sectors depend. Given the increasing threat -- through either irresponsible or unintentional acts -- to the long-term sustainability, stability, safety, and security of space operations, we must work with the community of spacefaring nations to preserve the space environment for all nations and future generations.

An International Code of Conduct for Outer Space Activities
In response to these challenges, the United States reached a decision to formally work with the European Union and spacefaring nations to develop and advance an International Code of Conduct for Outer Space Activities. The European Union’s draft Code of Conduct is a good foundation for the development of a non-legally binding International Code of Conduct focused on the use of voluntary and pragmatic transparency and confidence-building measures to help prevent mishaps, misperceptions, and mistrust in space. An International Code of Conduct, if adopted, would establish guidelines for responsible behavior to reduce the hazards of debris-generating events and increase the transparency of operations in space to avoid the danger of collisions.

Protecting National and Economic Security
The Obama Administration is committed to ensuring that an International Code enhances national security and maintains the United States’ inherent right of individual and collective self-defense, a fundamental part of international law. The United States would only subscribe to such a Code of Conduct if it protects and enhances the national and economic security of the United States, our allies, and our friends. The Administration is committed to keeping the U.S. Congress informed as our consultations with the spacefaring community progress.

MILITARY SAYS BUDGET MAKES CUTS IN SPACE CAPABILITIES

The following excerpt is from a U.S. Defense Department American Forces Press e-mail:
Official: 2013 Budget Targets Space Capability Resilience
By Cheryl Pellerin
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, March 9, 2012 - The $9.6 billion for space programs within President Barack Obama's fiscal year 2013 budget request will boost resilience for U.S. space capabilities but cut some modernization and other programs, Air Force Gen. William L. Shelton, commander of the Air Force Space Command, told a House panel yesterday.

Shelton testified on national security space activities before the House Armed Services Committee's strategic forces subcommittee, along with Ambassador Gregory L. Schulte, deputy assistant secretary of defense for space policy, Gil I. Klinger, deputy assistant secretary of defense for space and intelligence, and other experts.

The president's budget request, Shelton said, "invests in programs that enhance the resiliency and effectiveness of our space capabilities, namely missile warning, positioning, navigation and timing, satellite communications, space situational awareness and space launch."

A 22 percent drop in the 2013 request from 2012 represents mainly "fact-of-life programmatic changes," the general said, along with "some very difficult budget decisions leading to cuts to some modernization programs, and restructuring our approach" to the Operationally Responsive Space Office, or ORS, and the Space Test Program.

Congress established the ORS in 2007 to shorten the space acquisition cycle while responding to urgent warfighter needs. The Space Test Program has been providing access to space for the DOD space research and development community since 1965.

The command, Shelton said, also seeks to speed the acquisition process for the Advanced Extremely High-Frequency Program, a joint service satellite communications system for high-priority military ground, sea and air assets, and the Space-Based Infrared System, a key part of North America's missile early warning and defense system.

The general said the Air Force Space Command is working closely with NASA and the National Reconnaissance Office to "bring stability and predictability to our launch programs."

Schulte told the panel that three elements are critical to the U.S. strategy in space: resilience, promoting responsible behavior in space, and energizing the space industrial base.

Examples of resiliency, he said, include hosted payloads, commercial augmentation, international cooperation and backup capabilities in other domains.
In 2008, the European Union published a draft Code of Conduct for Outer Space Activities and a revised draft in 2010.

"The EU's draft is a promising basis for an international code," Schulte said.
"It focuses on reducing the risk of creating debris and increasing transparency of space operations. It is not legally binding and recognizes the inherent right of self-defense. It addresses behavior rather than unverifiable capabilities and better serves our interests than the legally binding ban on space weapons proposed by others," he added.

"As we participate in the development of an international code," Schulte told the panel, "the department is committed to ensuring that it advances our national security."

The ambassador said the United States could energize the space industrial base by allowing industry to compete internationally for the sale of satellites and technologies that are already widely available.
Today, some commercial satellite components reside on the Munitions List, a registry of items subject to the International Traffic in Arms Regulations because they are considered dual-use exports -- those that can be used for peaceful and military ends. The State Department strictly regulates and licenses such exports.

Last year, Schulte said, the departments of Defense and State concluded that commercial communications satellites and related components, with a few exceptions, can be moved from the U.S. Munitions List to the Commerce Control List without posing an unacceptable security risk.

The forthcoming final report, he added, will identify more items that can be safely moved.
"This approach -- higher fences around fewer items -- will require new legislation," he told the panel.

"Your support can help energize our industrial base and thereby enhance our national security," Schulte added. "Giving our industrial base new commercial opportunities is particularly important at a time of defense spending constraints."
Deputy Assistant Secretary Klinger told the panel that DOD is recapitalizing virtually all its space lines of business, "and doing so at precisely a time of sharply constrained resources and as the nation remains at war."

The department is doing the following:
- Executing oversight earlier in the acquisition process so program managers can achieve authority to proceed early and then focus their energies on program execution.
- Using fixed-price contracts, more innovative contracting and evolutionary upgrades where those make sense.

- Pursuing a block buy for the Advanced Extremely High-Frequency 5 and 6 satellite programs and developing a plan to use the savings to improve the capability of military satellite communications overall.

"This is extremely important as we plan ahead to maintain the resources to protect our seed corn of promising technologies," Klinger said. "We intend to use competition where and when it makes sense."