Asteroid Mining - US considers legalisation

This has got some buzz recently. 

From Vox [ 11 September 2014]

The Outer Space Treaty of 1967 — a UN treaty signed by 102 countries, including the US — bans countries from appropriating any astronomical bodies. But there's a dispute over whether this would apply to private companies mining asteroids. Congress seems to be arguing that it does not. On Wednesday, a House subcommittee discussed a new law that would explicitly give companies ownership over any materials they extract from an asteroid. Still, experts disagree over whether this would be compatible with international law — and whether it'd actually legalize asteroid mining.  The Outer Space Treaty of 1967 is the foundation of most current international space law. It's crystal-clear on a few different things: it bars countries from putting nuclear weapons in space, using the moon as a military base, or otherwise claiming ownership over the moon or planets. But it's frustratingly vague — and a little self-contradictory — when it comes to asteroid mining. The relevant clause says "Outer space, including the moon and other celestial bodies, is not subject to national appropriation by claim of sovereignty, by means of use or occupation, or by any other means." Proponents of asteroid mining argue there are a few loopholes that would permit them to do their thing.

Meanwhile in Japan there are plans for a mineral exploration experiment From Business Insider

Japanese space scientists have unveiled the asteroid hunting space probe they hope to launch later this year on a mission to mine a celestial body. The probe, named Hayabusa-2, is expected to be flung into space on a rocket for a mammoth four year voyage to the unpoetically-named 1999JU3 asteroid. When it gets there, some time in 2018, it will release a powerful cannon which will fire a metal bullet at the asteroid's barren crust, once the probe itself has scuttled to safety on the far side of the rock. It will then return to scoop up material uncovered by the cannon blast. If all goes well, these pristine asteroid samples will be returned to Earth by the time Tokyo hosts the Olympic Games in 2020.