ROMANIA

STATEMENT
by Mr. Dumitru PRUNARIU, President of the Romanian Space Agency

Allow me, on behalf of the Government of Romania, to join the previous speakers, and congratulate you on your election as President of the Third United Nations Conference on the Exploration and Peaceful Uses of Outer Space. I would like to convey the same congratulations to the whole Bureau of the Conference. I wish to assure you and your colleagues of my delegation's full support and co-operation. I am deeply confident, that under your able leadership, we will succeed in achieving tangible results and fruitful conclusions.

At the same time, I would like to express the most sincere thanks to the Government of Austria for hosting and supporting the Conference, and, in particular, to Ambassador Dr. Peter Jankowitsch and the Austrian National Committee for UNISPACE III. Likewise, I equally offer my sincere thanks and appreciation to the Director General of the United Nations Office at Vienna, the Director of the Office for Outer Space Affairs and the whole staff of the secretariat for its untiring activity of organizing and scheduling this great international event.

My delegation had the honour to associate itself with the statement delivered yesterday by the Finnish Minister of Trade and Industry, Mr. Erkki Tuomioja, on behalf of the European Union and the associated countries. I will therefore make the following comments from a national perspective.

I would like to express my delegation's satisfaction while noting once more that there have never been so many co-operation reasons and possibilities at the international level, in the field of space applications, as the existing ones. Today, one could easily note that there are real and new perspectives, which allow enlarging strengthening of international co-operation in the peaceful uses of outer space. This could be materialized not only in a perpetual effort aimed at achieving scientific and technical progress in the space field for the benefit of the whole mankind, but also in the consolidation of the confidence and security climate among States by preserving the safety of the outer space.

In this regard, I wish to point out the innovative role that the United Nations and the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space have played during the last 42 years of space related activity.

We share the view that this unique role has not been limited to current practice or simple codification of the current activities of States. On the contrary, it has been based on a remarkable capability of anticipation of human developments in an area, which half a century ago was depending on the heavenly willpower only. I would therefore dare to say that the United Nations activity of extension of the international law principles to the domain of outer space has represented an authentic exercise of preventing diplomacy "avant-la-lettre".

In was in this spirit in which, we have welcomed the adoption by the United Nations General Assembly of the resolution 52/56 of 10 December 1997, regarding the convening of the Third United Nations Conference on the Exploration and Peaceful Uses of Outer Space in Vienna, in 1999, the year of the thirtieth anniversary of the Moon landing. We are aware that since the Second United Nations Conference in 1982 new major developments have occurred everywhere. Scientific and technological progresses have attracted political, economic and social transformations. Today, it is generally accepted that the communications revolution has changed the world.

I would however like to stress that space technologies have not revolutionized the telecommunications only. Their application to the fields of monitoring climatic change and pollution, control of hydrological, mineral and agricultural resources as well as remote sensing of drug related crops cultures has made an important contribution to efforts to find solutions of some global problems, while imposing new challenges.

New developments have also occurred in the legal regime of the outer space. Since 1982, the representatives of the Member States have agreed to a series of declarations and principles aimed at assuring that all countries have access to, and benefit from, outer space activities.

In presenting some reasons why UNISPACE III should have been converted, one needs to simultaneously learn from the recommendations implemented of UNISPACE 82. In this connection, I would like to make a reference to the strengthening and expansion of the United Nations Programme on Space Applications, which has proved to be a very good tool for developing technological bases in the space field. In the view of the Romanian delegation, the Programme should be given a stronger support, including through provision of adequate resources.

Romania is benefiting from the international co-operation in the peaceful uses of outer space and is making, according to her resources, her contribution to this co-operation. We are determined to guide the space activities in which we participate towards practical applications.

Consequently, the Romanian Space Agency supports the participation of Romanian scientists and researchers in efforts made at the international level with a view to deepening the knowledge on outer space.

Romania is equally interested in the use of the space techniques. Successful launches of scientific experiments and devices achieved by Romanian scientists were performed in the frame of several international space missions. Presently, a number of scientific instruments and devices developed by Romanian researchers are in orbit. Meaningful scientific results were obtained in astrophysics, Earth environment studies, microgravity researches, fundamental science in space, thermal elasticity, information processing. A significant number of research reports were published in international journals. A great number of projects were conducted to spin-offs, especially in satellite communications, small aircraft onboard technology, termography algorithms and information technology.

Since 1998, the National Space Programme has been reviewed so that the projects are oriented towards space science and its applications. Special emphasis was given to projects of national significance, including a small satellite for hazard monitoring and a public database of satellite imagery.

The co-operation between Romania and ESA, as well as other international organizations such as COSPAR, INTELSAT, INMARSAT continues to further develop and strengthen.

Romania and Greece have initiated and elaborated, during the sessions of the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space, the concept of a Network of Space Science and Technology Research and Education Institutions for Central, Eastern and South Eastern Europe. The Network, which is established under the co-ordination of the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs, covers Bulgaria, Greece, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Turkey. In this context, Romania offered infrastructure facilities for the establishment of a Regional Centre of Space Science and Technology, as an element of this Network.

I am honoured to inform this august body that the issue of the development of the core institutions of this Network was thoroughly discussed during the UNISPACE Regional Preparatory Conference for Eastern Europe, which was held in Bucharest from 25 to 29 January 1999. The participants of 21 countries and 8 international organizations who attended the Conference concluded that there was a need to initiate joint projects, which should include both, scientific and education aspects. The core institutions of the Network should also develop a satellite communication oils infrastructure, including appropriate terminals in each country for distant education and on-line information exchange of regional interest.

Furthermore, it has been recommended that Member States in the region increase their capacity to understand the associated technologies and to place a high priority on their development at the national level. Each State should enhance its basic and advanced research capabilities in the relevant disciplines. In this context, the strengthening of the scientific research and practical applications activities in the field of satellite remote sensing was considered having a special importance. This would also apply to the developing of the Regional Black Sea and Caspian Sea Systems for environmental monitoring of the sea.

The same Preparatory Conference recommended the development of a microsatellite programme devoted to operational uses such as hazard monitoring of 'the region, with long-term spin-offs in the promotion of space science, technology and applications. The result of the programme could significantly contribute to new research and development, including high level education and training in space related fields.

The Romanian Space Agency, under the auspices of the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs, published a volume on the proceedings of the Preparatory Conference. These proceedings, which will be circulated in the following days, contain the regional contribution and input to the work of UNISPACE III