Space Security and the Transatlantic Relationship

The proposed creation of a US Space Force - a new branch of the US military responsible for warfare in space - has led to a ratcheting up of a sense of competition and threat among spacefaring powers. Some have even started referring to the current period as the beginning of a new Space Race. Indeed, ambitious plans to send humans to the Moon within 5 years and to Mars even as early as 10 years are on the table. This paper addresses the implications of this new Space Force for Europe’s security and defense through a look at the historical transatlantic relationship involving space exploration. It argues that despite many efforts to militarize space on the part of governments over the past 70 years, on the whole space has been a highly cooperative realm of interaction among states, even during the height of the Cold War. This historical context provides a basis for understanding current trends and efforts among space actors on both sides of the Atlantic, and what challenges Europe will face in space in the coming years.