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HUNTSVILLE, Ala. — Malaysia and the Philippines have signed the Artemis Accords, which outline norms of behavior for space exploration.
The White House announced the signings in an Oct. 26 fact sheet about President Trump’s visit to Malaysia.
“Maintaining a long tradition of U.S. leadership in space, the Philippines and Malaysia committed to principles of safe and transparent space exploration by signing the Artemis Accords,” the fact sheet said.
That document, along with a social media post by the U.S. State Department, were the only public statements about the signings. The ongoing federal government shutdown, now nearly four weeks long, has limited the ability of NASA and the State Department to promote events such as the signings.
The foreign ministries of both Malaysia and the Philippines did not immediately release statements about the agreements.
With Malaysia and the Philippines joining, 59 nations have now signed the Artemis Accords, including seven this year and three this month, after Hungary signed Oct. 22.
The Accords were introduced five years ago this month, when eight nations, including the United States, became the first signatories. The document outlines best practices to promote safe and sustainable space exploration, covering areas such as transparency, the sharing of scientific data, responsible use of space resources, and the establishment of “safety zones” to prevent harmful interference.
Representatives of 39 signatory nations met last month during the International Astronautical Congress to discuss progress on implementing provisions of the Accords, including noninterference, data sharing, and limiting lunar orbital debris.
Another key topic was encouraging more countries to join. “Some members are trying to find their value add for the Accords,” said Ahmad Belhoul Al Falasi, a United Arab Emirates government minister who chairs the board of the UAE Space Agency, during a press conference after the meeting.
He said an upcoming workshop in Peru will focus on ensuring all signatories can actively participate in discussions. “We want to have a very well-defined way that enables these countries to contribute,” he said.
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