Outer space treaty

 It is an international treaty binding the parties to use outer space only for peaceful purposes.

 The treaty came into force in 1967, after being ratified by the United States, the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, and several other countries.

 It represents the basic legal framework of international space law. Among its principles, it bars states party to the treaty from placing weapons of mass destruction in orbit of Earth, installing them on the Moon or any other celestial body, or otherwise stationing them in outer space.

 However, the Treaty does not prohibit the placement of conventional weapons in orbit and thus some highly destructive attack strategies such as kinetic bombardment are still potentially allowable.

 The treaty explicitly forbids any government from claiming a celestial resource such as the Moon or a planet.