Moon mining rush: Russia to draw UN’s attention to US plans to grab lunar resources

MOSCOW, October 27. /TASS/. The issue of the US intention to extract mineral resources on the Moon will be discussed at the 75th session of the UN General Assembly at Russia’s request, the State Space Corporation Roscosmos told TASS on Tuesday. "Yes, it [Roscosmos] is planning to," the space agency said, responding to a question about Russia’s plans to raise this issue at the UN. "The corresponding item has been included in the session’s agenda. The issue will be raised on behalf of the Russian Federation in line with the procedure accepted at the UN," Roscosmos specified. Roscosmos Chief Dmitry Rogozin earlier stated that the Moon’s privatization contradicted international law and Russia would not allow this. US President Donald Trump signed an executive order in April, proclaiming Washington’s right to extract various metals and other mineral resources on the Moon, particularly within the late phases of the Artemis lunar program. NASA later announced the Artemis Accords, a set of standards on how to explore the Moon, which are said to be grounded in the 1967 Outer Space Treaty. NASA’s standards particularly concern the use of lunar resources and the idea of creating the so-called "safety zones" to prevent "harmful interference." The Artemis Accords envisage a series of bilateral agreements between the United States and partner countries. Read more