STATEMENT BY THE HEAD OF THE PORTUGUESE DELEGATION
H. EXC. AMBASSADOR JOAO ROSA LA
PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE OF PORTUGAL TO THE UNITED NATIONS IN VIENNA
 

MR. CHAIRMAN,

I WOULD LIKE TO CONGRATULATE YOU FOR YOUR ELECTION TO THE CHAIRMANSHIP OF THIS CONFERENCE AND THE MEMBERS OF THE BUREAU. I ALSO WOULD LIKE TO EXTEND MY EXPRESSION OF GRATITUDE TO THE DIRECTOR OF THE OFFICE OF OUTER SPACE AND HIS SECRETARIAT FOR THE EXCELLENT WORK CARRIED OUT IN THE PREPARATION OF THIS CONFERENCE.

MY DELEGATION TAKES THIS OPPORTUNITY TO ENDORSE THE STATEMENT ISSUED BY THE FINNISH MINISTER FOR TRADE AND INDUSTRY ON BEHALF OF THE EUROPEAN UNION.

MR. CHAIRMAN,

UNISPACE CONSTITUTES BY ITS DIMENSION AND IMPORTANCE A UNIQUE FORUM FOR THE EXCHANGE OF VIEWS, INFORMATIONS AND EXPERIENCES CONCERNING THE PEACEFUL USES OF OUTER SPACE.  IN ORDER TO PROMOTE THE GLOBALISATION OF SPACE SCIENCES AND TECHNOLOGIES, IT WILL CERTAINLY BE A GOOD STEP TO ENHANCE THE CO-OPERATION BETWEEN THE MAJOR INTERESTED COUNTRIES AND TO WIDESPREAD THE AVAILABILITY OF ITS BENEFITS.  SPACE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY ARE OF UTMOST IMPORTANCE TO PROMOTE ECONOMIC, SOCIAL AND CULTURAL DEVELOPMENT.  EVERY NEW SPACE TECHNOLOGY IS AN ASSET TO BE SHARED.

IN THIS REGARD, WE SHOULD STRESS THE BACKGROUND WORK OF UNISPACE, THE VARIOUS ACTIVITIES OF COPUOS AND ITS COMMITTEES AND THE UNITED NATIONS PROGRAM ON SPACE APPLICATIONS, IN SPITE OF THE LACK OF RESOURCES.

MR. CHAIRMAN,

PORTUGAL WILL BE A FULL MEMBER OF THE EUROPEAN SPACE AGENCY ON THE 1 ST. JANUARY 2000. THIS FACT AT THE START OF THE NEW MILLENNIUM HAS A PARTICULAR SIGNIFICANCE FOR A COUNTRY THAT STARTED ITS DIALOGUE WITH THE STARS SIX CENTURIES AGO WHEN WE PIONEERED NAVIGATION WITHOUT VISUAL CONTACT WITH THE SHORE AIDED SOLELY BY OUR NAUTICAL INSTRUMENTS

MR. CHAIRMAN,

THE PARTICIPATION OF PORTUGAL ON ACTIVITIES RELATED WITH OUTER SPACE STARTED IN THE SEVENTIES, WHEN SATELLITE IMAGERY WAS FIRST USED IN OUR COUNTRY. A LANDMARK AT THE INSTITUTIONAL LEVEL AND INTERNATIONAL COMMITMENT WAS THE INTEGRATION OF PORTUGAL AS A MEMBER OF THE COPUOS IN 1980.

PORTUGAL WAS ONE OF THE FOUNDERS OF EUMETSAT, PLAYING AN ACTIVE ROLE IN THE AREA OF METEOROLOGICAL SATELLITES, IN COOPERATION WITH OTHER EUROPEAN COUNTRIES. WAS ALSO A PILOT COUNTRY OF THE EUROPEAN CORINE PROGRAM.

IN THE EARLY NINETIES, PORTUGAL LAUNCHED A TELECOMMUNICATIONS AND EARTH OBSERVATION SATELLITE. MORE RECENTLY, THE PARTICIPATIONS ON THE EUMETSAT WAS REINFORCED AND ONE OF THE DESCENTRALISED CENTERS OF THE GROUND SEGMENT WAS SET UP IN LISBON.

IN THE FIELD OF RESEARCH AND MANAGEMENT SUPPORT ACTIVITIES, A SPECIAL EMPHASIS IS BEING GIVEN TO THE ISSUES RELATED WITH ENVIRONMENT, METEOROLOGY, NATURAL RESOURCES, CLIMATIC CHANGE AND CARTOGRAPHIC PRODUCTION. IT IS RECOGNIZED THAT REMOTE SENSING IS A POWERFUL TOOL FOR THE MONITORING AND EARLY WARNING OF LARGE SCALE GLOBAL EVENTS.

THE RELEVANCE OF THESE ISSUES LEAD TO THE INCREASING PARTICIPATION OF VARIOUS PORTUGUESE INSTITUTIONS ON INTERNATIONAL PROJECTS.

THE HISTORICAL LINKS OF OUR COUNTRY WITH SOUTH AMERICA AND AFRICA, IN PARTICULAR WITH PORTUGUESE SPEAKING COUNTRIES, CREATES APPROPRIATE CONDITIONS FOR PROJECTS OF CO-OPERATION, IN THE PREVIOUSLY MENTION-ED FIELDS.

IT IS ALSO WORTH TO BE MENTION-ED THE PORTUGUESE PARTICIPATION IN THE EXPANSION OF BOTH EUROPEAN SATELLITE NAVIGATION SERVICES (EGNOS AND GALILEO) TO OTHER REGIONS OF THE WORLD.

ONE OF THE ITEMS OF THE AGENDA OF UNISPACE III DEALT WITH THE EVALUATION OF THE WORK CARRIED OUT BY THE COMMITTEE ON THE PEACEFUL USES OF OUTER SPACE AND THE LEGAL SUBCOMMITTEE.

MR. CHAIRMAN,

THE BASIC PRINCIPLE BEHIND INTERNATIONAL LAW STATES THAT "OUTER SPACE IS THE PROVINCE OF ALL HUMANKIND". "OUTER SPACE SHOULD NOT BE AN OBJECT OF APPROPRIATION BY ANY SINGLE COUNTRY OR ANY GROUP OF STATES".

THE ACTIVITIES DEVELOPED SHOULD NOT ONLY BENEFIT ALL THE COUNTRIES AND THE WHOLE OF HUMANKIND BUT ALSO ENHANCE INTERNATIONAL CO-OPERATION IN SPACE.  WE ACKNOWLEDGE ALL THE ENDEAVOURS AND ACHIEVEMENTS BY COPOUS TOGETHER WITH THE LEGAL SUB-COMMITTEE.

REFERENCE SHOULD ALSO BE MADE TO THE HIGHLY TECHNICAL FEATURES OF MANY OF THE MATTERS DEALT WITH AND TO THE DIFFICULT POLITICAL QUESTIONS ARISING IN THE FIELD OF SPACE ACTIVITIES.

THE INCREASED INVESTMENTS AND THE TECHNOLOGICAL INNOVATION IN SPACE ACTIVITIES, IN RECENT YEARS HAS BROUGHT ABOUT NEW QUESTIONS RELEVANT TO THE GROWING PRIVATE SECTOR.

LAST YEAR WE SAW THE FIRST PORTUGUESE PRIVATELY FUNDED PAYLOAD ON THE SPACE SHUTTLE.   AS A CONSEQUENCE WE NEED TO KNOW IF THE REALM OF PRINCIPLES AND STANDARDS CREATED AND ADOPTED BY STATES CAN BE ADJUSTED TO THE NEW FRAMEWORK OF SPACE ACTIVITIES.

PRIVATE ENTERPRISES AND MARKETING, WHICH CLEARLY PLAY AN INCREASINGLY IMPORTANT ROLE IN RENDERING SPACE EXPLORATION MORE ACCESSIBLE, SHOULD HAVE AVAILABLE REGULATORY MECHANISMS OF INTERNATIONAL LAW, AS THE UNITED NATIONS CAN PROVIDE.

TO CONCLUDE MR. CHAIRMAN,

PORTUGAL SUPPORTS EQUITABLE ACCESS TO THE BENEFITS OF SPACE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY DERIVING FROM THE USE OF OUTER SPACE.

WE HOPE THAT THE VIENNA DECLARATION AND THE FUTURE ACTION PLAN FOR THE NEW MILLENNIUM WILL BECOME A RELEVANT FRAMEWORK ABLE TO ALLOW THE CREATION OF CONDITIONS FOR THE CONTINUED PEACEFUL AND PROFITABLE USE OF OUTER SPACE.

THANK YOU.