THE increasing investment in space warfare technologies raises the alarm about space weaponization.
Strategic analysts point out that advances in space weapons could destabilize the prevalent strategic equilibrium among the great powers and regional strategic competitors.
Besides, weaponizing outer space would be equally dangerous for the civilian outer space industry.
It disrupts the satellites’ paths and operations, causing disaster for the international economy.
The establishment of the US space force, a significant move during the first tenure of President Donald Trump, carries profound strategic implications.
On June 18, 2018, he announced the creation of a ‘space force’ as a new branch of the US military.
He said, ‘Very importantly, I’m hereby directing the Department of Defense and Pentagon to immediately begin the process necessary to establish a space force as the sixth armed forces branch.
’ He added: ‘That’s a big statement.
We are going to have the Air Force, and we are going to have the Space Force – separate but equal.
It is going to be something so important.’
Although Russia and China possess advanced space capabilities, they are averse to space weaponization.
On July 4, 2024, President Vladimir Putin said, “We agreed in the declaration, and it is also stated in other documents, that all countries of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization are against the deployment of any weapons in space.
This is, after all, a signal to the rest of the world about how we feel about the militarization of outer space.
” The US strategy to develop and deploy space weapons to keep the United States ahead in space may compel Russia and China to quash their restraint policy and enter into devastating space weaponization.
The United States granted India Strategic Trade Authorization-1 (STA-1) status on August 3, 2018.
This status permitted US companies to sell India a greater range of dual-use and high-tech products, particularly in the defense and civil space sectors.
Indeed, the Americans’ continuous assistance to India’s military modernization, including space weapons development, will affect the regional and global strategic environment.
New Delhi and Washington signed the Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agreement for Geospatial Coordination, or BECA, on October 27, 2020.
This agreement allowed the militaries of the two countries to access an extensive assortment of geospatial data from each other.
The availability of highly accurate navigation satellite networks enables India to strike targets thousands of kilometers away with great accuracy.
India uses satellite technology in its advanced weapons systems aboard aircraft and warships to carry out precision-strike capabilities.
It indigenously developed satellites such as Geostationary Satellites—GSAT-6 and GSAT-7 and Radar Imaging Satellite—RISAT-2BR1.
It was reported that Indian scientists are developing a small robotic craft to be used as a missile-bed in space to intercept the adversary’s ballistic missiles.
It is developing micro-satellites, which can covertly manoeuvre close to the other nations’ commercial satellites.
“Experts believe the small satellites could be used for a kamikaze-type mission to ram another satellite or to snoop on it for data collection or jamming to interfere with its capabilities.”
The US military assistance contributes constructively to developing, testing and operationalizing India’s ballistic missile defense (BMD) systems.
India’s BMD program aims to produce two-tiered missile defensive systems comprising Prithvi Air Defense (PAD) and Advanced Air Defense (AAD) systems.
The PAD provides long-range high-altitude ballistic missile interception during an incoming missile’s midcourse phase, and the AAD offers short-range, low-altitude defense against missiles in the terminal phase of their trajectory.
India’s expanding space capabilities, including satellite-based surveillance and reconnaissance, can significantly enhance India’s counterforce pre-emptive strike potential.
Moreover, its ASAT capability could disrupt satellite communications and intelligence gathering in its opponent states.
It could also destroy the adversary’s incoming missiles by integrating BMD systems with its satellites to enhance situational awareness, precise targeting capabilities and immediate access to battlefield information.
Currently, India can interfere with a satellite’s operations using satellite jammers, lasers and high-power microwave gun systems and destroy a satellite with anti-satellite weapons.
For instance, India launched the target satellite, Microsat-R, at 282 kilometers, into a sun-synchronous orbit on January 24, 2019.
It demonstrated a kinetic energy anti-satellite (KE-ASAT) weapon test by destroying a live satellite in low orbit using a ballistic missile vehicle under ‘mission Shakti,’ a mission aimed at testing India’s ASAT capabilities, on March 27, 2019.
Moreover, the Indian Defense Research and Development Organization is developing lighter and more advanced ASAT weapons.
India’s steady march towards space weaponization will directly affect Pakistan’s defensive capabilities.
India could use its space warfighting capabilities to disrupt Pakistan’s satellite communications and intelligence gathering.
Hence, Pakistan needs to urgently invest in the space industry to deter its adversaries’ military adventurism in space.
—The writer is Prof at the School of Politics and IR, Quaid-i-Azam University.([email protected])
