[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 191 (Thursday, December 8, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Page S7072]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         SUBMITTED RESOLUTIONS

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SENATE RESOLUTION 864--EXPRESSING SUPPORT FOR THE DRAFT UNITED NATIONS 
GENERAL ASSEMBLY RESOLUTION A/C.1/77/L.62 CALLING UPON MEMBER STATES TO 
COMMIT NOT TO CONDUCT DESTRUCTIVE DIRECT-ASCENT ANTI-SATELLITE MISSILE 
   TESTS, INTRODUCED BY THE UNITED STATES AT THE 77TH SESSION OF THE 
                    UNITED NATIONS GENERAL ASSEMBLY

  Mrs. FEINSTEIN (for herself, Mr. Hickenlooper, Mr. Van Hollen, Mr. 
King, Mr. Kelly, Mr. Padilla, Mr. Markey, and Mrs. Murray) submitted 
the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on 
Foreign Relations:

                              S. Res. 864

       Whereas the United States is joined by countries around the 
     world in relying on Earth-orbiting satellites for--
       (1) navigation;
       (2) communications;
       (3) financial transactions;
       (4) media broadcasting;
       (5) agriculture;
       (6) detection and surveillance of threats and disasters;
       (7) scientific research; and
       (8) monitoring and forecasting of environmental parameters, 
     including--
          (A) weather;
          (B) ocean conditions; and
          (C) vegetation health;
       Whereas the United States is tracking more than 47,000 
     objects orbiting the Earth that are larger than 10 
     centimeters, an increase of 47 percent since January 2021, 
     and further estimates a population of more than 100,000,000 
     objects larger than 1 millimeter orbiting the Earth;
       Whereas orbital maneuvering to avoid collisions consumes 
     onboard propellant and shortens the lifespans of spacecraft 
     missions;
       Whereas the proliferation of satellites and debris orbiting 
     the Earth results in millions of potential collision warnings 
     issued by the United States Space Command each year, while 
     satellites and debris are expected to continue increasing 
     exponentially;
       Whereas destructive direct-ascent anti-satellite missile 
     tests create large and dispersed orbiting debris fields that 
     deny satellites access to needed orbital space and threaten 
     to inadvertently destroy other satellites and spacecraft for 
     decades after such tests;
       Whereas a destructive direct-ascent anti-satellite missile 
     test conducted by the Russian Federation on November 15, 
     2021, long after the dangers of orbital debris became well 
     known, produced more than 1,500 pieces of identifiable debris 
     and threatened the safety of astronauts and cosmonauts aboard 
     the International Space Station;
       Whereas a destructive direct-ascent anti-satellite missile 
     test conducted by the People's Republic of China on January 
     11, 2007, created at least 3,400 pieces of debris, of which 
     79 percent is predicted to be in orbit 100 years after the 
     event;
       Whereas the United States adopted a voluntary moratorium on 
     the destructive testing of direct-ascent anti-satellite 
     missile systems in April 2022;
       Whereas methods other than destructive direct-ascent anti-
     satellite tests are available to test defense capabilities;
       Whereas the international community has previously banned 
     destructive activities in space, including the atmospheric 
     testing of nuclear weapons;
       Whereas, during a meeting of the Disarmament and 
     International Security Committee of the United Nations (UN) 
     General Assembly, the United States introduced draft UN 
     General Assembly Resolution A/C.1/77/L.62 calling upon member 
     states to commit not to conduct destructive direct-ascent 
     anti-satellite missile tests;
       Whereas, on November 1, 2022, the Disarmament and 
     International Security Committee approved the draft 
     resolution by a vote of 154 to 8, demonstrating broad 
     international support for the efforts of the United States 
     and sending it to the UN General Assembly for consideration; 
     and
       Whereas 8 countries have followed the example of the United 
     States and committed not to conduct destructive direct-ascent 
     anti-satellite missile testing, including--
       (1) Canada in May 2022;
       (2) New Zealand in July 2022;
       (3) Germany in September 2022;
       (4) Japan in September 2022;
       (5) the United Kingdom in October 2022;
       (6) South Korea in October 2022;
       (7) Switzerland in October 2022;
       (8) Australia in October 2022; and
       (9) France in December 2022: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) expresses support for--
       (A) the United Nations General Assembly Resolution 
     introduced by the United States to call upon member states to 
     commit not to conduct destructive direct-ascent anti-
     satellite missile tests; and
       (B) the commitment of the United States to the peaceful and 
     safe use of outer space;
       (2) recognizes Canada, New Zealand, Germany, Japan, the 
     United Kingdom, South Korea, Switzerland, Australia, and 
     France for following the United States in pledging to not 
     conduct destructive direct-assent anti-satellite missile 
     tests; and
       (3) calls on other nations, particularly nations with 
     significant assets in space and that have previously tested 
     destructive direct-ascent anti-satellite missiles and nations 
     that recognize the indispensable benefits provided by space 
     capabilities, to join the United States in adopting a 
     voluntary moratorium on the destructive testing of direct-
     ascent anti-satellite missile systems.

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