Keep weapons out of space: India

With China's anti-satellite missile test sparking concern across the globe, India on Sunday said outer space should be preserved as a "sanctuary from weapons", and efforts made to harness space for peaceful uses like disaster management.

"The security and safety of assets in outer space is of crucial importance for global economic and social development. We call upon all states to redouble efforts to strengthen the international legal regime for peaceful uses of outer space," External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee said in Delhi.

Inaugurating an international aerospace power seminar hosted by the Indian Air Force for the first time and attended by 36 air force chiefs, Mukherjee said space-based assets were viewed as "critical national infrastructure to be protected or denied to potential adversaries."

"Satellites play an important role in intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance, secure communication and delivering accurate firepower on the ground at large distances," he said.

"Recent developments show that we are treading a thin line between current defence-related uses of space and its actual weaponisation. While the focus on aerospace power is natural, it is in our common interest to preserve outer space as a sanctuary from weapons and guard it as the common, peaceful heritage of mankind."

Mukherjee also warned of the proliferation of nuclear weapons and the possibility of them falling into the hands of terrorists.

"A new thinking is called for in the light of recent developments and the damage wrought by clandestine proliferation rings," he said.