India has said outer space should remain a realm for cooperation, not conflict, calling for a legally binding international instrument to prevent an arms race in space.
“India is a major space-faring nation. “India believes that outer space belongs to all of us. We are one Earth, one family with one future. Noting the emergence of new actors in the outer space domain, Ms. India reiterated its preference for a legally binding instrument on the Prevention of an Arms Race in Outer Space (PAROS) that is universally acceptable, verifiable and negotiated multilaterally at the Conference on Disarmament. India also emphasised that threats to the safety, security and sustainability of outer space, the risk of misunderstanding and miscalculation, and the threshold for what constitutes the use of force in space, must be considered together. “A selective focus on some threats or others would be counterproductive. Verifying space behaviour, including access to relevant information and data, also poses real challenges. Mandates of various fora focusing on space security, safety, and sustainability must be respected,” Ms. She added that overlaps and the creation of multiple standards on the same set of issues should be avoided. As a developing country, India believed any outcome of the process must not discourage the exchange of scientific and technological research for peaceful and legitimate purposes, Ms.
Our space programme has both developmental and security dimensions,” Sudha Murty, Member of Parliament, said in New York on Tuesday (October 20, 2026), while delivering India’s statement on outer space at the UN General Assembly’s First Committee.
It is our view that outer space should remain a realm for cooperation, not conflict,” she said. Murty said dual-use space technologies and assets had become a reality. “A difference of opinion continues on approaches to preventing an arms race in outer space and on which approach should take priority,” she said. Murty said.
