Nationality: Saudi Arabia / Russian Federation
Country of Residence: Saudi Arabia
Nominator: Lesley Jane Smith
Supporters: Setsuko Aoki, P.J. Blount, Steven Freeland, Peter Martinez, Tanja Masson-Zwaan, Scarlet O’Donnell
Professional path (including present position)
Since 2023: Visiting Professor, Assistant Professor at Prince Sultan University, College of Law (Saudi Arabia).
2021-2022: Associate Professor at the Lomonosov Moscow State University, Space Research Department (Russia).
2017-2020: Second Secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, Legal Department (Russia).
2009-2017: International Law Advisor, Chief International Law Advisor at the Federal Space Agency / State Space Corporation “Roscosmos” (Russia).
Education and degree
2017: The Hague Academy of International Law, Centre for Studies and Research (The Netherlands), Summer course session “Fifty Years of Space Law”.
2013-2015: Moscow State Institute of International Relations (Russia), LL.M. in EU Law (magna cum laude).
2014: College of Europe, Postgraduate Institute of European Studies (Belgium), ESI Summer Seminar. 2010-2015: Russian Foreign Trade Academy (Russia), PhD in International Space Law (magna cum laude). 2010-2011: European Centre for Space Law (France, Spain, Croatia), 19th, 20th Summer Courses on Space Law and Policy.
2005-2010: Russian Foreign Trade Academy (Russia), Specialist diploma: International lawyer with foreign languages proficiency (magna cum laude).
Main publications in English
- Volynskaya O. (2024) Heading for the stars and space law: the case of Saudi Arabia. IAC 2023 Congress Proceedings, 74th International Astronautical Congress (IAC), 2–6 October 2023, Baku, Azerbaijan.
- Volynskaya O. (2023) Non-legally binding political commitments on space arms control norms. Research Fellowship Report, Secure World Foundation.
- Volynskaya O. (2023) Framework and licensing requirements for space activities in Russia, with a particular focus on the NewSpace sector. Routledge Handbook on Commercial Space Law / ed. by I. Baumann, L.J. Smith, S.G. Wintermuth. Taylor and Francis, p. 167–180.
- Volynskaya O. (2020) Navigation by Satellite. Fifty Years of Space Law / Cinquante ans de droit de l’espace / ed. by P. Achilleas, S. Hobe. The Hague Academy of International Law, Centre for Studies and Research in International Law and International Relations Series, Vol. 21, p. 375–428.
- Volynskaya O. (co-authored with a group of authors) (2018) Space Traffic Management – Towards a Roadmap for Implementation / ed. by K.-U. Schrogl. IAA.
- Schmidt-Tedd B., Volynskaya O. (2017) Introduction to space law of the Russian Federation. Space Law: Basic Legal Documents Instalment 20 (Summer 2017). Eleven International Publishing.
- Volynskaya O. (2016) Space resource mining. IISL Directorate Study (background paper), p. 14–15. 8.
- Volynskaya O. (2016) Regulation of navigational satellites in the Russian Federation. Routledge Handbook of Space Law, McGill University, 2016, p. 300–303.
- Zhukov G., Volynskaya O. (2015) Legal aspects of the globalisation of space innovations. Monograph Series III: Global Space Governance / ed. by R. Jakhu, K.-W. Chen, Y. Nyampong, McGill University, p. 243–260.
- Volynskaya O. (2013) Landmark space-related accidents and the progress of space law. German Journal of Air and Space Law (Zeitschrift für Luft- und Weltraumrecht) 2, p. 220–236.
Membership and professional affiliation
Individual Member of the International Institute of Space Law (since 2014).
Academician of the Tsiolkovsky Russian Academy of Cosmonautics (Russia) (since 2022).
Awards and other accomplishments
2019: Space Law Award for Young Achievers (awarded by the International Institute of Space Law)
2018: Commendation by the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs for substantial contribution to the preparation and holding of the Fifth Caspian Summit and signing of the Convention on the Legal Status of the Caspian Sea
2014: Certificate of Appreciation by Roscosmos for long-standing fruitful work in the area of development and use of rocketry and spacecraft
Space law expertise
Author and co-author of 88 scientific publications on international law, international space law and foreign trade, including 14 R&D reports on international law, space law and the law of the sea.
Project leader and coordinator of translation of the Cologne Commentary on Space Law (Volume I in Russian was published in 2017, Volume II – in 2019).
Participated in the key international scientific-practical fora on international space law and climate change, including the International Astronautical Congresses (presented, served as rapporteur or co-chair of IISL sessions in 2010, 2012, 2013, 2015-2017, 2023), UN/IISL/ECSL Space Law Symposia (2011-2019), UNIDIR Space Security Conferences (2014-2017), UN Climate Change Conferences (2017 and 2018), UN/ Germany High Level Forum: The way forward after UNISPACE+50 and on Space2030 (2018), etc. Co- organizer of the First United Nations Conference on Space Law and Policy (Moscow, 2018).
In 2011-2020 was permanent member of the Russian delegation to the UNCOPUOS and its Subcommittees.
Advisory Board member and co-author of the Routledge Handbook II on Commercial Space Law (published in 2023).
Lectured on space law and policy in universities of France, Germany, Japan, the Netherlands, Russia, South Africa, and Saudi Arabia.
IISL Position applied for
Director
Specify your relationship with the IISL
Individual Member since 2014.
Member of the IISL Space Traffic Management Working Group (2022).
Member of the IISL Elections Committee (2023-2024).
Specify the reason for applying for the postition and how you can serve IISL
My passion for international space law has guided me through the past 17 years in the legal profession. As a space agency lawyer and then diplomat, I was honored to represent Russia and its unique space legacy in the United Nations and renowned academic fora. My career path was shaped by the example of outstanding people who created, developed, and taught space law. It is my responsibility now to pass on this knowledge and inspiration to future space law experts.
In my current role as Assistant Professor of Prince Sultan University – a leading educational hub in Saudi Arabia – I am committed to bringing up the first generation of Saudi space lawyers and the shaping of the Kingdom’s regulations for the national space industry.
This year, I am honored to coach the first-ever student team from Saudi Arabia participating in the Manfred Lachs Space Law Moot Court Competition. The team successfully qualified for the oral regional rounds. My current work on promoting space law in Saudi Arabia as a new ambitious space player and regional leader opens up new opportunities for the IISL to expand its presence and promote its values in the MENA region, and explore new areas of cooperation.
I believe that I can serve the Institute by implementing the following initiatives:
- Promotion of knowledge of space law in Saudi Arabia and the MENA region.
- Development of a professional certification program in the field of international space law, inspired by best practice of other cutting-edge areas of law.
Name, Surname of Nominator
Lesley Jane Smith
Nominator's reasons for nominating the nominee
Dr. Olga Volynskaya is a well-known space law, policy and diplomacy expert, with extensive practical experience gained in the Russian space agency and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Since 2022, she has been working out of Saudi Arabia, where she teaches space law to Saudi law students, cooperates with the Saudi Space Academy, and has been acting over the past year as the formal coach to the first-ever Saudi team to participate in the Manfred Lachs Space Law Moot Court Competition 2024 (the team successfully qualified for the regional oral rounds).
Olga is also currently external adviser of the Communications, Space and Technology Commission (the Saudi space regulator), and has made a significant expert contribution to the drafting of the first Saudi space regulations.
Olga has unmatched experience during the nine years where she acted as official delegate to COPUOS; before this, she worked as the Roscosmos agency lawyer. Olga’s proficiency in English, French and Russian language is a very valuable asset for her research and international cooperation projects.
She has the highest of qualifications as a legal scholar, from her LLM Masters to PhD doctorate, having graduated from renowned educational institutions in Russia, as well as the College of Europe and the Hague Academy of International Law during her formative education years.
Further core contributions to scholarly work take the form of a rich portfolio of publications, the most notable of which in English being her collaboration with the Cologne Commentary on Space law, (CoCoSL), of which she translated two volumes into Russian. Her ongoing interest in contributing to the dissemination of space law can be seen in the lectures she has delivered over the past years into various renowned institutions, from Japan to the United Kingdom.
Olga has also been a recipient of various Awards, including the IISL Space Award for Young Achievers in 2019.
The subject of space law and its developments have accompanied Olga at a practical and scholarly level for the past seventeen years. Her active work in promoting space law in Saudi Arabia - a new ambitious space player and regional leader - opens up new opportunities for the IISL to expand its influence in the MENA region and explore new areas of cooperation.
I commend her without reservation to the Institute as Board Member and Director.
Lesley Jane Smith
VP International Institute of Space Law
Supporters:
Setsuko Aoki
P.J. Blount
Steven Freeland
Peter Martinez
Tanja Masson-Zwaan
Scarlet O’Donnell