Office of the Spokesperson
Affirming its commitment to the peaceful, responsible, and sustainable exploration and use of outer space, France became the 20th nation to sign the Artemis Accords at a ceremony hosted today by French Ambassador Philippe Étienne in Washington, DC. The Accords were signed by Philippe Baptiste, President of CNES, the French National Center for Space Studies.
CNES President Baptiste was joined for the event by NASA Administrator Bill Nelson, National Space Council Executive Secretary Chirag Parikh, and Director of the Office of Space Affairs Valda Vikmanis-Keller from the Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs at the U.S. Department of State.
Grounded in the Outer Space Treaty of 1967, the Artemis Accords are a multilateral, nonbinding declaration of principles and rules to enhance governance of the responsible exploration of outer space. Artemis Accords’ principles include the registration of space objects, deconfliction of activities, release of scientific data, and provision of emergency assistance. These principles help increase the safety of operations, reduce uncertainty, and promote the sustainable and beneficial use of space for all humankind.
The twenty nations of the Artemis Accords – Australia, Bahrain, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, France, Israel, Italy, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Luxembourg, Mexico, New Zealand, Poland, Romania, Singapore, Ukraine, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, and the United States – are setting an important standard for international cooperation in outer space. While Accords signatories are a diverse set of nations spanning five continents, they have committed together to responsible behavior in outer space. These shared commitments provide a firm foundation for international collaboration, including through NASA’s Artemis Program, which will put the first woman and first person of color on the Moon and prepare the way for a human mission to Mars.
The signing ceremony preceded the 60th-anniversary celebration for CNES, which has partnered with the United States on numerous space exploration and earth observation activities, including the successful launch of the James Webb Space Telescope.
For further information on the Artemis Accords, visit https://www.nasa.gov/specials/artemis-accords/index.html.
For media inquiries, please contact OES-PA-DG@state.gov.