Amending Article 6 of the North Atlantic Treaty to Explicitly Ensure Article 5 Covers the Space Objects of Parties

Outer space and the space objects of Parties to the North Atlantic Treaty have emerged as indispensable components in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s (NATO) mission to ensure collective self-defence and deter aggression. However, the text of the North Atlantic Treaty has no mention of outer space nor the Parties’ space objects. Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty confirms the doctrine of collective self-defence. Instead, it is Article 6 which outlines what territories and what assets of the Parties are covered by Article 5. Parties’ space objects are not assets currently listed within Article 6. This omission leaves the space objects of Parties outside the bounds of Article 5 and therefore vulnerable to interference or armed attack. NATO’s current approach to outer space and Parties’ space objects is entirely too weak in certifying Article 5’s application to this domain and such objects. Such weakness is confirmed when looking at NATO’s current approach to cyberspace and Article 5, which is nearly identical to its approach to outer space. Recent disregard for NATO’s non-binding statements on Article 5’s application to cyberspace implies it will have equal disregard for Article 5’s application to space objects. To prevent such undermining of NATO’s commitment to collective self-defence and deterrence, an amendment should be made to prong two of Article 6 of the North Atlantic Treaty. The language “or space objects of any of the Parties when launching to or operating in outer space” should be added to the end of prong two. Such an amendment would ensure that NATO’s doctrine of collective self-defence remains rock-solid and continues to deter threatening states. The strength of NATO lies in the certainty of its response to aggression and, most importantly, armed attacks.