Space Mining and Pakistan’s Position in a New Celestial Order  

Introduction

Once seen as an arena of science and technology, space has unfolded as a final frontier in a domain of geoeconomics as humanity sets its sights on making space mining a reality. The allure of space mining has captivated both the private and state sectors, as NASA estimates a single asteroid like “16 Psyche” to be worth $10,000 quadrillion USD, while the near-Earth asteroids (NEAs) are believed to hold $1-50 billion worth of platinum-group metals each.

Asteroids teeming with rare earth metals, valuable minerals, lunar regolith rich in helium-3, and water ice buried beneath the Moon’s surface hold vast economic and strategic promise. Currently, the technology is not yet capable of fulfilling this mission, but advances in this sector are taking place at a rapid pace. Both state-led space agencies and private giants, such as NASA, CNSA, JAXA, SpaceX, and Blue Origin, are pouring billions into the development of extraction infrastructure, orbital manufacturing, and interplanetary transport systems.

The race is no longer just to explore; it is to extract. Advances in rocketry, space-based manufacturing, and AI integration in space technology are steadily paving the path. As the world has transitioned from geopolitics to geoeconomics, the North-South divide is increasing, tilting the economic fulcrum. It has left the global south with two stark choices: participate or be left behind.

Therefore, it has become a necessity that Pakistan must carefully consider its place in the evolving legal frameworks for extraterrestrial resources. This article will decipher the space mining industry and the legal loopholes in international regulations and propose a policy roadmap for Pakistan to assert its interests while aligning them with global space mining ambitions. 

The Promise and Peril of Space Mining

Space mining, also known as asteroid mining, is the process of extracting valuable resources from celestial bodies for use on Earth. According to the Space Generation Advisory Council, “Space mining comprises the exploration, exploitation, and utilization of natural resources to be found in the Moon, other planets, and near-Earth asteroids (NEAs); primarily, what can be encountered is a rich diversity of useful materials such as minerals, gases (mainly Helium-3), metals, and water. This activity is envisaged to be key to the future of space exploration, as it may sustain human life in the long term by providing energy and raw materials—manufactured from space mining findings—and, consequently, it may enable the future and deeper exploration of outer space.”

Therefore, space mining is crucial for the development of long-standing space exploration projects, along with revolutionizing industry, energy, and interstellar communications. Rare earth metals like neodymium and gadolinium are crucial in modern technological developments like electric cars and smartphones, and their trade is used as a political tool due to their scarcity on Earth. Extraction of such rare earth metals, iron, and minerals not only destroys landscapes but also disrupts the biodiversity balance.

To cater to the needs and preserve the Earth, the space-faring nations are now turning towards space mining and heavily investing in extracting resources from outer space. These metals and resources can be utilized in the manufacturing of military equipment and technology, and can serve as fuel for space probes and shuttles.

In an era of geopolitical conflicts and resource scarcity, space mining will become a primary harvesting method of rare metals and iron. Therefore, future geopolitical rivalries will be based upon access and extraction of space resources and will become a cornerstone for strategic autonomy and economic stability.

The Gaps in International Space Law

The rapid advancements in the domain of space mining have revealed the fault lines in international space laws. The legal vacuum and non-ratification of global powers have created a critical lag in the development of space laws. In the heart of the vacuum lies the Outer Space Treaty (OST) of 1967, a multilateral treaty that serves as the foundational pillar of international space law.

Although national appropriation of celestial bodies is forbidden by Article 2 of the OST, it remains silent on private ownership or commercial exploitation of spatial resources. The question of whether private parties can claim ownership of the extracted material without breaking the OST is thus raised and becomes a crucial discussion point in the spatial domain.

The OST was formed in 1967, an era in which space exploration was limited only to state-led missions, not private entities or private space programs that focused solely on space-based extractions. The OST is unable to address the legal questions and legal issues arising in the 21st century, and this legal void would push the space-faring nations to asteroid and lunar colonization.

This void was addressed by the Moon Agreement in 1979, which declared, “The Moon and all of its resources are a common heritage of mankind,” and further reinstated that its resources are to be governed through international regimes, not private entities. However, the Moon Agreement proved to be ineffective due to non-ratification by space superpowers, including the U.S., China, and Russia. Pakistan, too, has not ratified the Moon Agreement.

The absence of binding multilateral regulations encouraged nations to move unilaterally to access the spatial resources. In this regard, the “United States Commercial Space Launch Competitiveness Act, 2015” explicitly grants American companies the right to own the resources they extract from celestial bodies. Luxembourg, the UAE, and Japan followed the lead and made similar national provisions that grant their citizens the right to own the spatial resources. These domestic laws have shifted the balance away from international agreement and toward laws based on national interests. Legal ambiguity has escalated into jurisdictional issues, igniting a new space race.

In the wake of all these conflicts, some soft laws, like the Artemis Accords, led by NASA, tried to bridge the legal voids and promote cooperation on the peaceful use of the Moon, celestial bodies, and their resources. However, they face a similar roadblock as they are non-binding. So, the current spatial landscape is characterized by fragmented government, the absence of enforcement mechanisms, and a lack of a universally accepted model for benefit-sharing. Without an enforceable regime, space mining would exacerbate global inequalities.

Pakistan’s Position in Space Mining: Leveraging Strategic Potential

Pakistan is a signatory to the OST 1967 but lacks a proper mandate and space mining policy. Furthermore, Pakistan’s non-ratification of the Moon Agreement puts it in the same legal category as the U.S. and other spacefaring nations but without technological leverage. The Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (SUPARCO), established in 1961, is Pakistan’s national space agency. One of the earliest space research agencies around the globe.

However, decades of underfunding, bureaucratic inertia, and strategic neglect have left Pakistan lagging significantly behind in both civilian and military space domains. SUPARCO’s current focus is largely on satellite communications and remote sensing through PRSS-1 and PakTES-1A. However, expansion of horizons to space mining would transform Pakistan and could reshape its economy, diplomacy, and strategic autonomy. 

If leveraged properly, stepping into the domain of space mining would transform Pakistan as:

• Involvement in space mining through bilateral cooperation with China, under CPEC’s Space Silk Route, would help Pakistan incorporate high-end, valuable metals into its industry, reducing dependency on international markets. It will pave the way towards an industrial revolution in aerospace, spacecraft manufacturing, AI integration, and robotics.
• Space mining would lead Pakistan towards resource sovereignty. Access to helium-3, water ice, and rare earth metals would allow Pakistan to build indigenous weapon systems and satellites, reduce import dependency, allow vertical proliferation of space technology to the global south, and empower Pakistan to export space-based resources around the world.
• Participating in space mining would help bring a much-needed uplift in the scientific and technological revolution and would shift national discourse towards high science and innovation while increasing strategic importance in the region. 
• By advocating for equitable space resource governance, Pakistan, on behalf of the Global South, can lead regional coalitions through forums like APSCO, actively use space diplomacy to counter Indian hegemony in the space sector, and gain observer or partner status in international space agencies like NASA and ESA.
• Through alliances with countries like Turkey, Iran, the UAE, and Nigeria, Pakistan could lobby for an equitable resource-sharing framework in the UN COPUOS. It would also allow Pakistan to emerge as a leader of the Global South.
• By unlocking this new frontier, Pakistan can easily shift to non-renewable energy sources by utilizing helium-3 and protect the biodiversity and landscapes of the country. It would also help to reduce the dependency on ecologically disastrous projects like Reko Diq and safeguard critical biodiversity zones. 

Conclusion

As the race to space mining intensifies, it is characterized by both sustainability and peril. Undoubtedly, it would diminish the burden of unchecked mining practices and dependency on fossil fuels, preserving our planet’s biodiversity and landscapes. The future will be all about harnessing celestial resources to fulfill mankind’s needs. However, it must be kept in mind that space mining comes with its environmental challenges, ranging from orbital debris to planetary contamination; therefore, it requires immediate environmental foresight and international regulation.

For Pakistan, the domain of space mining brings a chance to leapfrog towards technological self-reliance and economic stability if it is leveraged with international partnerships, coherent policy frameworks, strategic alliances, and a commitment to sustainability. By expanding the horizons of the Space Silk Route, Pakistan and China can emerge as true leaders of the Global South in a rapidly evolving celestial order.

---

If you want to submit your articles and/or research papers, please visit the Submissions page.

To stay updated with the latest jobs, CSS news, internships, scholarships, and current affairs articles, join our Community Forum!

The views and opinions expressed in this article/paper are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect the editorial position of Paradigm Shift.