Open-Ended Working Group (OEWG) on Reducing Space Threats Fact Sheet
Fact Sheet – October 2023
2022–2023 UN Open-Ended Working Group on Reducing Space Threats
By Brian Weeden, Director of Program Planning, SWF
In 2021, the UN General Assembly established an Open-Ended Working Group (OEWG) to discuss “reducing space threats through norms, rules, and principles of responsible behaviors.” The OEWG held four meetings in 2022–2023 with over 70 participating countries and dozens of civil society observers, making it one of the most inclusive and substantive space security discussions to date.
Unlike treaty-based proposals like the PPWT, the OEWG focused on behaviors rather than technologies. Key topics included destructive ASAT testing, uncoordinated rendezvous and proximity operations (RPO), and the application of international humanitarian law in space. The OEWG emphasized the value of voluntary norms in complementing legal frameworks.
Despite strong participation and shared recognition of growing threats, the OEWG failed to deliver a consensus report—due in part to resistance from Russia and China. However, it marked a meaningful advance in multilateral dialogue and laid groundwork for future space security governance.
