Research On The International Legal Regime Of Mineral Resources Exploitation In Outer Space

The rapid pace of technological development and the exploding human population make the exhaustion of non-renewable mineral resources on Earth only a matter of time.The increasing pressure motivated humankind to exploit natural resources in the deep seabed,the Polar Regions and the outer space.Since space activities are very expensive with high risks,it is a tendency that governments begin to cooperate with private entities.America and Luxemburg have already passed mineral exploitation act to protect property right of private entities.However,there exist no specific international legal regime to regulate exploitation activities in outer space.Therefore,to parallel with Chinese space industry,which has a promising future,it is necessary for China to build its legislation system in outer space concerning commercial exploitation.How to build Chinese international discourse capacity is becoming increasingly important in the absence of an international regime for the exploitation mineral resources.This dissertation aims to compare the exploitation regime of mineral resources in outer space with the deep seabed and the Polar Region,based on the concept of Common Heritage of Mankind and a Community of Shared Future,to find out whether the legal regime of similar regions could be applied in outer space concerning the exploitation of mineral resources.In pursuit of the creation of a comprehensive,appropriate comparative study,this dissertation is divided into the following chapters:Chapter 1 is an introduction and overview of the Global Commons,which constitutes the legal basis for the outer space,the deep seabed and the Polar Regions.A distinguish between the terra nullius,res communis and the Common Heritage of Mankind is also provided in this Chapter.Chapter 2 provides an analysis of the existing international law regulating exploitation of mineral resources in outer space,in particular the freedoms of exploration and use,the principle of common interest,the principle of non-appropriation enriched in the Outer Space Treaty and Article 11 of the Moon Agreement.Based on these authorities,an analysis of the legality of American and Luxemburg’s mineral exploitation Act is provided.Chapter 3 discusses the international regimes applicable to the deep seabed and the Polar Regions and considers the success and failure of previous intergovernmental negotiations over similar legal regimes,which leads to an evaluation on whether similar legal regimes are applicable in outer space.Chapter 4 attempts to make some recommendations for China on how to build international discourse capacity in the area of exploitation activities in outer space.