Wkład Unii Europejskiej w rozwój międzynarodowego reżimu kosmicznego

The growing dependence of countries and societies on the use of space technologies results in the increasing activity in outer space of new actors, both state and non-state. It produces a number of adverse outcomes for the space environment, making it a less and less safe place (e.g. space debris). Emerging threats may affect national and international security on earth. As a result, an urgent need for a collective approach to the management of the use of outer space is emerging. The international legal regime for outer space that has been developing since the beginning of the space age is no longer sufficient, because it does not take into account many rapid changes. One of the attempts to overcome this problem is the International Code of Conduct for Outer Space Activities drafted by the European Union in 2008. This paper discusses the reasons why, despite long-lasting efforts and intensifying problems, the Code has so far failed to win the approval of the powers which is requisite to constitute an important part of the international outer space regime.