Partnerships will help protect U.S. space assets, official says
In response to the growing number of nations with counter-space capabilities, the United States is nurturing partnerships with spacefaring companies and allied nations to maintain its strategic advantage in space, said a top DOD official.
In response to the growing number of nations with counter-space capabilities, the United States is nurturing partnerships with spacefaring companies and allied nations to maintain its strategic advantage in space, Ambassador Gregory Schulte, deputy assistant secretary of defense for space policy, told a group of defense reporters with whom he met July 19 in Washington.
One of the key points of Schulte’s discussion, which was covered by the American Forces Press Service, is that the field of nations with space-based military capabilities — such as satellite damaging jammers and lasers — has expanded and that 11 countries now operate 22 launch sites around the globe.
Among the existing international space partnerships, which Schulte said would share the burden of space defense and promote deterrence against aggression, are the advanced EHF satellite, in which three other nations participate, and the Wideband Global Satcom System, in which Australia participates.