Washington urged to respect outer space order

China has urged the United States to respect the international order in outer space and protect the safety of astronauts and facilities in orbit.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian confirmed on Tuesday that the Permanent Mission of China to the United Nations and other International Organizations in Vienna had submitted a note verbale to the UN secretary-general for safety reasons earlier this month.

Starlink satellites, launched by U.S. company Space Exploration Technologies Corp, have had two close encounters with China's orbiting space station, which constituted danger to the lives or health of astronauts aboard the Chinese craft, the note said.

Out of security considerations, China's space station implemented preventive collision avoidance measures in July and October, Zhao said.

"The Outer Space Treaty that entered into force in 1967 is a universally recognized cornerstone of international law in the field of outer space," Zhao said.

The U.S. talks about responsible behavior in outer space, but in practice it ignores its obligations under the international treaty and poses severe threats to astronauts, holding "typical double standards", he said.

Under the treaty, astronauts are regarded as envoys of mankind in outer space and their safety should be respected and protected by all countries, he said.

States that are party to the treaty should immediately inform other state parties to the treaty, or the secretary-general of the United Nations, of any phenomena they discover in outer space, which could constitute a danger to the life or health of astronauts, the treaty says.

It also stipulates that parties to the treaty bear international responsibility for national activities in outer space, whether such activities are carried out by government agencies or nongovernment entities.

In order to fulfill the obligation of the treaty and protect astronauts' safety, China had notified the UN secretary-general of the dangerous situations as well as the measures China has taken, and asked him to circulate relevant information to all state parties to the treaty, Zhao said.

The U.S. should immediately take action to avoid a recurrence of the incident, Zhao added.