U.S. Department of State

10/15/2024 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 10/15/2024 15:22

United States Welcomes Estonia’s Signing of the Artemis Accords

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United States Welcomes Estonia's Signing of the Artemis Accords

Media Note

Office of the Spokesperson

October 15, 2024

Estonia became the 45th signatory to the Artemis Accords in Milan, Italy on October 13. The United States welcomes Estonia into the Artemis Accords as we strengthen our collaboration to ensure the sustainable use of space.

Errki Keldo, Minister of Economy and Industry in the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications (MEAC), signed on behalf of Estonia in the presence of MEAC Director of EU and International Affairs Silver Tammik, MEAC Head of Space Policy Paul Liias, Estonian Ambassador to Italy Lauri Bambus, President of the Canadian Space Agency Lisa Campbell, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Rahima Kandahari, and NASA Administrator Bill Nelson.

The Artemis Accords were established in 2020 by the United States and seven other countries. They set out a practical set of principles to guide space exploration. Estonia joins 44 other nations - Angola, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Bahrain, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Colombia, Czech Republic, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, India, Israel, Italy, Japan, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Peru, Poland, the Republic of Korea, Romania, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Uruguay - in affirming the Accords' principles for sustainable civil space activity. The Department of State and NASA lead the United States' outreach and implementation of the Accords.

For more information, please visit Artemis Accords. For media inquiries, please contact [email protected].