Sanctions and the International Law of Outer Space

This article examines how multilateral and unilateral sanctions affect the legal regime governing outer space and whether their effects can be accommodated without undermining the foundational principles of international space law. It argues that sanctions and space law interact more often than is assumed, because space activities are capital-intensive, technologically complex, and frequently connected to dual-use goods, services, and infrastructure. This work starts by distinguishing between pre-launch and post-launch sanctions and assesses their interaction with the foundational principles of the Outer Space Treaty, namely peaceful purposes, freedom of exploration, non-appropriation, and the requirement that outer space be used for the benefit and in the interests of all countries. It concludes that multilateral sanctions adopted under the United Nations Charter prevail over inconsistent space-law obligations but should nevertheless be interpreted so as to preserve the continuity of its core principles wherever possible. By contrast, unilateral sanctions enjoy no comparable hierarchical primacy, and their legality will depend on their characterisation under general international law. The article concludes that sanctions affecting space activities remain constrained by obligations relating to human safety and the long-term sustainability of the space environment.