Editorial | Space no place for wars between nations

The United States military formed a unified command for its activities in space in 1983 during the cold war. It was to be terminated in less than 20 years in a defence restructuring after the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the US. Now President Donald Trump has recreated it as a distinct service responsible for controlling the military’s operations in space. It is seen as a counter to Russian and Chinese advances in space power. Trump describes space as “the next war-fighting domain” and claims “SpaceCom will ensure that America’s dominance in space is never questioned and never threatened”.

SpaceCom commander General Jay Raymond cited China and Russia as specific rivals to the US military’s space enterprise, which is instrumental in how troops move, communicate and target enemies on the battlefield. In particular, he cited advances that have rendered space a contested domain where the US faces new threats, from the jamming of GPS and communications satellites to the possibility those satellites could be shot down.

However, such space warfare commands are a worrying development with the potential to lead to an arms race in space that will swallow money like a black hole.

Cooperation in space exploration through science-driven missions offers a more affordable and effective alternative to manned exploration. A world that has suffered so much from conflict on its own ground needs peaceful cooperation in space.

As a first step towards achieving it, the ban on nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction in space should be extended to conventional weapons. This in turn could help bring space powers together to focus on advances in science and technology that will ultimately prove to be of benefit to mankind.

In that regard China, though the third and increasingly accomplished nation in space, remains excluded from using the International Space Station, largely due to pressure from the US. That hardly serves the goal of quarantining space from conflict. Nations with advanced technology have a moral duty to work together to pursue the peaceful exploration of space, and to prevent its militarisation.