Issue Brief on “The Intensifying Pursuit of Anti-Satellite Capabilities: Assessing the Gaps in International Regulatory Frameworks”

1394

Exerting greater influence and establishing dominancy is the inherited self-centered nature of the state which often indulges states in maximizing their capabilities. This lust for power and dominancy ultimately lit the fire to maximize their capabilities more specifically in the realm of space dominancy with significant space weapon development. Hence, this trend of enhancing capabilities lays the ground for the concept known as “Space Weaponization.” This rapid race toward space weaponization has the potential to exploit valuable assets such as satellites and navigation and disrupt communication. A major player in this debate is Anti-satellite (ASAT) weapons, which can be defined as “weapons that are designed to destroy the satellite for strategic or tactical purposes.” These weapons are categorized into two categories, kinetic and non-kinetic ASATs, which can jam the frequency and disabling satellite. Before the development of ASAT weapons, the satellite was used for specific commercial, civilian, and military applications such as exploration and communication.[1]

Read More