The Military Use of Mineral Resources of Celestial Bodies under International Space Law

Space mining is one of the new space activities. Since the minerals in the Moon and other celestial bodies have high quality, it is foreseeable that they could be exploited and used in industries, including military and weaponry. Due to this fact, it is essential to understand the position of international law on the use of space minerals in the production of military equipments and weapons. In the first step, the present article highlights the necessity of ending or at least restricting space mining and the production of weapons in order to protect international peace and security by analyzing the basic principles contained in the Outer Space Treaty. In the next step and beyond conventional system of space law, the use of mineral resources of celestial bodies has been evaluated in the context of the documents on sustainable development of space activities. The aim of the present study is to take an important step towards maintaining and establishing international peace and security in outer space by clarifying the legal aspects of the military exploitation of the mineral resources of celestial bodies.