On Wednesday, Russia used its veto at the UN Security Council to oppose a quality sponsored by the United States and Japan that would outlaw nuclear weapons in space.
China abstained from the ballot, while the other 13 people of UNSC all voted in favor of the solution.
Because orbital nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction ( WMD) were already prohibited by the 1967 Outer Space Treaty, Russia asserted that the new resolution was unnecessary.  ,
By proposing or opposing the fresh estimate, the U.S. and Russia both claimed to be pulling dirty tricks and engaging in political theater.
Linda Thomas- Greenfield, the U.S. ambassador to the UN, described it as “baffling” for Russia to reject a decision that only reinstated the 1967 agreement.
” Today’s reject begs the question: Why? Why would n’t you back a resolution that affirms the rules if you are adhering to them? What could you perhaps been hiding? It’s puzzling. And it’s a shame”, she said.
Jake Sullivan, the White House’s national security advisor, responded to Thomas-Greenfield’s rhetorical criticism by accusing Russia of” shooting over the quality” because it is “developing a new telescope carrying a atomic device.”
Sullivan made reference to remarks made by White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby in February that Russia is developing a” troubling” new” space-based” anti-satellite weapon. Kirby gave a few facts about this tool, but he specifically stated that it would violate the 1967 Outer Space Treaty.
In addition, according to other comments made by U.S. intelligence officials in February, Russia may have planned to launch a nuclear weapon into circle that was detonate a large number of commercial and military spacecraft in the event of an uprising military conflict.
Because there would be few casualties and quick environmental damage, one of the reasons this idea is so” troubling” to U.S. military planners is that Russia may think it could escape a massive nuclear reaction.
It would be in their interests to inform Russian bodybuilder Vladimir Putin that putting a nuclear weapon in circle for any reason is unethical, as the United States officially warned China and India in February that Russia would ruin their satellite networks as well if it actually detonated like a weapon.
Thomas- Greenfield echoed those warnings in public in her remarks at the United Nations, advising the entire world to join against planetary nuclear weapons because they could destroy” thousands of satellites operated by countries and companies around the world”, wiping out” the critical communications, medical, meteorological, agricultural, industrial, and regional security services we all depend on”.
” Regrettably, one permanent member decided to silence the critical message we wanted to send to the present and future people of the world: outer space must remain a domain of peace, free of weapons of mass destruction, including nuclear weapons”, said Japan’s U. N. ambassador Yamazaki Kazuyuki.
” Today’s vote represents a glaring missed opportunity to rekindle the much-needed trust in the country’s existing arms control obligations,” the statement reads. The U.S. and Japan said in a joint statement following the vote that” now begins the work of righting that wrong.”
Russian U.N. Ambassador Vassily Nebenzya responded on Wednesday, saying the new resolution was “absolutely absurd and politicized,” and that it was “absolutely absurd and politicized” for not going far enough because it focused on nuclear warheads rather than other space weapons.
We want to outlaw the use of any kind of weapon in space, not just WMDs. But you do n’t want that. And let me ask you that very same question. Why”? Nebenzya shot back at Thomas- Greenfield.
It is completely absurd to try to portray Russia as a player who has no interest in preventing an arms race in space and does n’t abide by the relevant obligations under international treaties,” he said.
The Russian ambassador ominously claimed that the United States has long opposed a Russian-Chinese proposal from 2008 to outlaw all weapons from space because it has plans to militarize space with non-nuclear weapons. He denounced the UNSC resolution as a” cynical ploy” with “hidden motives”.
