1. Each
State Party may
assure itself that the
activities of other
States Parties in
the
exploration and use of the
moon are
compatible with the
provisions of this
Agreement.
To this end, all
space vehicles,
equipment,
facilities,
stations and
installations on the
moon shall be
open to other
States Parties. Such
States Parties shall give
reasonable
advance notice of a projected
visit, in
order that appropriate
consultations may be held
and that
maximum precautions may be taken to
assure safety and to
avoid interference with
normal operations in the
facility to be
visited. In pursuance of this
article, any
State
Party may
act on its own behalf or with the
full or partial
assistance of any other
State
Party or through appropriate
international procedures within the
framework of the
United
Nations and in
accordance with the
Charter.
2. A
State Party which has
reason to believe that another
State Party is not fulfilling
the
obligations incumbent upon it pursuant to this
Agreement or that another
State Party
is interfering with the
rights which the former
State has under this
Agreement may
request
consultations with that
State Party. A
State Party receiving such a
request shall enter
into such
consultations without
delay. Any other
State Party which
requests to do so shall
be entitled to take part in the
consultations. Each
State Party participating in such
consultations shall
seek a mutually acceptable resolution of any
controversy and shall
bear in
mind the
rights and
interests of all
States Parties. The
Secretary-General of the
United Nations shall be informed of the results of the
consultations and shall transmit
the
information received to all
States Parties concerned.
3. If the
consultations do not
lead to a mutually acceptable
settlement which has
due
regard for the
rights and
interests of all
States Parties, the
parties concerned shall
take all
measures to settle the
dispute by other
peaceful means of their
choice
appropriate to the
circumstances and the
nature of the
dispute. If difficulties arise in
connection with the
opening of
consultations or if
consultations do not
lead to a mutually
acceptable
settlement, any
State Party may
seek the
assistance of the
Secretary-General,
without
seeking the
consent of any other
State Party concerned, in
order to resolve the
controversy. A
State Party which does not maintain
diplomatic relations with another
State
Party concerned shall
participate in such
consultations, at its
choice, either itself or
through another
State Party or the
Secretary-General as
intermediary.