Takshashila Discussion Document - Space as a Geopolitical Environment

Executive Summary

The ability to use space for commercial, military, and scientific purposes has become a vital determinant of national power. Yet space is a novel environment for human activity and the strategic implications of using it are poorly understood. This document seeks to understand how space functions as a geopolitical environment and provide a useful set of ideas for both scholars and practitioners. Focusing on orbital space, it looks at space as both a physical and strategic geography as well as a potential arena for military operations. It examines strategic theories of space, the structure and logic of space warfare, and the potential for putting in place legal and normative arrangements for space activity.

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