Yesterday, Vice President and National Space Council Chair, Kamala Harris, visited Vandenberg Space Force Base in California where she announced the United States’ commitment “not to conduct destructive, direct-ascent anti-satellite (ASAT) missile testing.” Vice President Harris also announced that the United States is seeking to establish this commitment as a new international norm for responsible behavior in space, and called on other nations to follow suit and to work together toward establishing this international norm.
“We applaud Vice President Harris for announcing this important step in the United States’ commitment to the safety, stability, and sustainability of the space environment,” said Chairwoman Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX) and Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics Chairman Don Beyer (D-VA). “As we stated after the reckless Russian ASAT test last Fall, ensuring the safety of the space environment must be a shared commitment, if any and all nations are to continue to pursue exploration, discovery, commerce, and other important missions in outer space. Being a leader is modeling the behavior we seek others to emulate, and we commend the Biden-Harris Administration’s leadership in working toward establishing international norms for responsible and peaceful behavior in space.”
