On the Necessity of Defending Belgian Interests in Outer Space

Outer space is becoming increasingly important for modern societies. At the same time, space is being transformed from a relatively benign environment to an operational and warfighting domain. NATO has adopted an ‘overarching space policy’, the European Commission presented a ‘European Union Space Strategy for Security and Defence’, and the ESA prioritised security in the ESA Agenda 2025. As a result of this shift, Belgium needs to increase its attention to the space domain and develop the capabilities needed to defend its interests in space. The strategic document for Defence of last year, the STAR-plan, and the National Security Strategy of 2021 are already recognizing the importance of defending the space domain. However, additional actions are needed to get even with outer space’s rapidly changing threat environment.