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Germans in space: Germany has decided to defend its extraterrestrial strategic interests
The German authorities have presented the first national space security strategy in the Bundestag. By 2030, it is planned to allocate €35 billion from the military budget for its implementation. According to the authors of the initiative, it is designed to protect the orbital infrastructure of Germany from attacks and potential threats allegedly emanating from the Russian Federation and China. Details can be found in the Izvestia article.
Three ministries have developed a strategy
"Space is no longer the exclusive domain of peaceful exploration. This dimension has long been an arena of conflict, strategic competition, and global power projection. Communications, navigation, Earth observation, time signals — the growing dependence of society on space services makes safety in space one of the main political tasks today. Germany is ready to take on more responsibility in this area," says the report posted on the website of the German Ministry of Defense.
The day before, Foreign and Defense Ministers Johann Vadefoul and Boris Pistorius presented the country's first government space security strategy. The Ministry of Scientific Research, Technology and Space also participated in the development of the document.
The publication notes that one of the main pillars of the strategy is close cooperation with European and international partners, as well as NATO allies. "Only together can we develop and enforce rules and regulations for the peaceful, responsible and sustainable use of outer space," reads the preface to the strategy, written by the two ministers.
By 2030, the German Defense Ministry plans to allocate a total of €35 billion from the defense budget for space research and security in space.
It follows from the Space Security Strategy that the civil, State and military aspects, as well as internal and external security in space, are inextricably linked. The authors identify three strategic areas of activity in space.
The first is to identify hazards and threats, as well as develop options for action. The second is to promote international cooperation and sustainable order in outer space.
The document notes that the race for access to space and its resources has already begun. "Some states are already developing and using means that allow them to deprive potential adversaries of the opportunity to freely use space," the publication says.
The third strategic direction is the creation of deterrents, strengthening defense capabilities and resilience.
In full swing
The document provides examples of Russian and Chinese intelligence activities using satellites. The German media noted that satellites hostile to Germany can not only conduct reconnaissance of the country's territory in various ways, but also hack into electronic accounts of government agencies, capable of disrupting mobile communications, air and sea navigation.
The publications also note that with the help of numerous satellites, the Russian Federation and China can allegedly completely paralyze the German economy.
Soyuz-2.1a with the Kondor-FKA radar satellite at the Vostochny Cosmodrome launch complex
According to Pistorius, the strategy sets the framework for "how Germany can better protect itself in space and become more resilient." First of all, it concerns the protection of satellites and related infrastructure, as well as the possibilities for conducting military operations in space.
In turn, Vadefoul said that the example of the Ukrainian conflict showed that space had turned from a sphere for peaceful research into "a platform for military conflicts and economic competition." He also added that the race for dominance in space is "in full swing."
What do the experts think
In Germany, they plan to return to its former conditional greatness, which was inherent in Germany earlier, in different historical periods of time, Natalia Eremina, professor of the Department of European Studies at the Faculty of International Relations of St. Petersburg State University, said in a conversation with Izvestia.
— The Germans and their leaders constantly have a desire to play a big role in the affairs of Europe and the world. They start demanding some special preferences sooner or later anyway," the expert complains.
According to the political scientist, Germany is asserting its leadership more and more actively.
"The country refuses the status of a political dwarf and strives to regain its former status as a significant and great power, because only a global power can have such serious space [projects] that it needs to protect its national security interests in space, and actually do it on its own," the specialist emphasized.
She added that Germany, as an EU country, sees that militarization is a necessary condition for supporting industry.
— Because there are no other opportunities to attract investments from outside, primarily from direct patrons from the United States. In addition, only militarization and contribution to the military economy can explain to the population why they should suffer," the analyst believes.
According to Eremina, with the help of militarization, the German authorities are trying to keep the economy afloat.
"It's always tied to the situation in Ukraine: the German voter is told that he must suffer because the country needs to defeat the supposedly evil Russia," Eremina explained.
She stressed that Germany is one of the European leaders in the development of space projects and technologies. The Germans are conducting large projects related to satellite systems, and they intend to develop this area and receive additional investments from other EU member states.
— Because Germany is the largest investor in the European Space Agency, which operates within the EU. We are talking about radar technology and satellites capable of blocking the actions of, as they say, Russian influence in the Baltic region at least," the political scientist noted.
In her opinion, they can expand their projects to a larger region, in particular to Northern Europe or the Arctic.
"Unfortunately, we know what this path of the Germans leads to historically," the analyst concluded.
Elena Panina, director of the Institute of International Political and Economic Strategies — RUSSTRAT, stressed that Germany "sees itself as a logistical hub and strategic rear of NATO in the upcoming war with Russia."
"If the German elite really wants to fight Russia, then it's better to prepare shelters in case of a nuclear war. And the fact that Berlin has decided to deploy American medium—range missiles, including nuclear-armed ones, on its territory from 2026 speaks in favor of just such a scenario," the analyst concluded.
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