Digital Commons Network^™

Strategic Communications With China About Space, Joan Johnson-Freese

Space and Defense

In 2006, I published an article entitled “Strategic Communication with China: What Message About Space?”1 The article pointed out that difficulties encountered in trying to convey its message regarding the Global War on Terror to a global audience had convinced the United States, or at least the Defense Science Board, that it needed to use strategic communications more effectively. From there I extrapolated, “If one believes that big problems are best tackled in small bites, ‘space’ perhaps offers an area where the United States can begin to understand and tackle some of the strategic communication issues it faces.”2 Communication mishaps …

Space And Sino-American Security Relations, Peter L. Hays

Space and Defense

China’s emphasis on space exploration and its development and use of space capabilities are prominent and tangible expressions of its emergence as a great power and make space an increasingly important dimension of Sino-American relations. In October 2003 China independently launched and recovered its first taikonaut, becoming just the third member of an elite spacefaring club with Russia and the United States. Then in January 2007 China first successfully tested a kinetic energy anti-satellite (ASAT) weapon and again joined Russia and the United States as one of only three states known to have demonstrated this capability. China’s growing power and …

Speech For The 2008 National Space Forum, Wayne Allard

Space and Defense

Good afternoon. It is a pleasure to be here with all of you today at the National Space Forum, and it is an honor to be here with so many industry experts and leaders. I thank our sponsors, the Eisenhower Center for Space and Defense Studies at the U.S. Air Force Academy and also the Center for Strategic and International Studies, for hosting this important event and for giving me an opportunity to speak to you today. In the Senate I have long supported the Center for Space and Defense Studies, and I am pleased to see the Center executing …

Space Deterrence Or Dominance?, Dwayne Liller

Space and Defense

A strategy to safeguard United States’ space assets is needed. Deterrence strategies, like Cold War nuclear deterrence, are often recommended. Nuclear deterrence history reveals that deterrence through dominance is what early strategists employed. Both Cold War adversaries attempted repeatedly to gain the lead in nuclear weapons. Seeking short term advantages activated the security dilemma and both sides responded in kind, guaranteeing an arms race. The faulty logic of the security dilemma was that the next advantage would bring security. This did not happen and illustrated how mutual vulnerability resulted from long term and determined opposition. That condition exists to this …

Coalitions In Space: Where Networks Are Power, James Clay Moltz

Space and Defense

This study begins with the widely recognized problem of 21st century space vulnerabilities. To address this challenge, it proposes the new concept of an “allied space network” as a possible means of both reducing risks and enhancing space power. Such a concept would move beyond realist, Cold War “balancing” in space, and instead would require new forms of technical and political cooperation in the military sector among participating states. In thinking about future space security this study argues that trans-national networks and alliances offer considerable untapped potential, with possibly significant benefits particularly for the United States, which—unlike China and Russia— …

European Approaches To Space And Security: Implications For Transatlantic Cooperation, Michael Searway

Space and Defense

As complex security threats are increasing the need for international cooperation on Earth, the growing number of actors in space increasingly demands collaboration in space and security. This need is intensified by the unique environmental attributes of space. For example, debris from space assets can orbit the Earth for years, rendering large areas of orbital space unusable. Moreover, as space becomes more crowded, the lack of comprehensive international governance amplifies the chance of mishaps above Earth.

Chinese Intentions In Space: A Historical Perspective For Future Cooperation, Gregory Kulacki

Space and Defense

The United States (U.S.) is opening a new dialogue with China on cooperation in space that includes human space flight. The announcement appeared in the Joint Statement issued by U.S. President Obama and Chinese President Hu in Beijing, China on 17 November 2009. The two leaders also agreed “the two countries have common interests in promoting the peaceful use of outer space and agree to take steps to enhance security in outer space.”1 These are significant shifts in U.S. civilian and military space policy. The U.S. ended cooperation in space with China more than a decade ago2 and consistently refused …

The New Space Order: Why Space Power Matters For Europe, Nicolas Peter

Space and Defense

More than fifty years since the dawn of the Space Age and twenty years since the end of the Cold War, space affairs and politics remain interlinked. Space activities are increasingly tied to national power for major world powers, and political objectives are still the driving force for most space activities. Yet in an ever more globalized and competitive multipolar world, status and power that arise from the employment and access to the most advanced technologies are now widely perceived as key to the powers and standings of states. The importance of space activities is increasing, transitioning in terms of …

Lawful Response To Attacks On Space Systems, James D. Rendleman

Space and Defense

What means may a nation lawfully employ to respond to and to defeat threats and attacks on its space systems? Treaties and customary law provide a strong incentive to limit space activities to non-aggressive “peaceful purposes.” They do not, however, proscribe space warfare or preparation for such conflict. Space system components are thus at risk, and can be attacked, degraded, or destroyed, simultaneously or each in detail. The use of force is allowed only in self-defense against an “armed attack” or in accord with authorization of the United Nations (UN). Kinetic, electromagnetic, or information operation attacks against space systems are …

Past U.S. Actions: A Source For Foreign Perceptions Of U.S. Redlines In Space, Jonathan Mazur

Space and Defense

This paper examines the boundaries of possible United States redlines in space. A redline in space is a “marker” that when crossed would result in a military or strong diplomatic response—such as what might occur if a foreign actor temporarily or permanently interfered with any aspect of a U.S. space system. The United States has not published or possibly even defined its redlines in space—as recently noted during the 2010 U.S. Strategic Command (STRATCOM) Deterrence Symposium by the then Commander for STRATCOM’s Joint Functional Component Command (JFCC) for Space in reference to the Schriever 2010 Wargames. The CDR JFCC Space …

Arms Control In The Third Space Age: Assessing International Efforts To Regulate Military Operations In Outer Space In The “3 C’S” Era, Walt Conrad, Justin Anderson, Sarah Jacobs Gamberini

Space and Defense

Preserving1and protecting the free and open use of outer space benefits all space-faring nations and is vital to U.S. national interests. U.S. military and civil space operations, however, face a number of growing challenges. Several countries possess or are developing means to disrupt or destroy space systems; space debris threatens the safe passage of spacecraft; and outer space is an environment where the United States now competes with a rapidly growing number of other space-faring nations. To remain the world’s preeminent military space power, the United States must consider a variety of means and strategies to address these challenges.

Cyber Deterrence: Is A Deterrence Model Practical In Cyberspace?, Nathaniel Youd

Space and Defense

Student Contribution:

After reconsidering massive retaliation versus escalation dominance concepts from nuclear deterrence, escalation dominance, investing in capability to respond proportionally at each level of cyber attack, may be the most practical and effective military strategy for strengthening cyber deterrence.

Cyberwar: Clausewitzian Encounters, Marco Cepik, Diego Rafael Canabarro, Thiago Borne Ferreira

Space and Defense

As Clausewitz’s masterpiece suggests, language matters for how states conceptualize and plan for war. ‘Cyberwar’, now on the lips of nearly every national security policymaker, may turn out to be a misnomer.

Editor's Note, Damon Coletta

Space and Defense

No abstract provided.

Geopolitics In Recent U.S. Professional Military Reading Lists, Bert Chapman

Libraries Faculty and Staff Scholarship and Research

Professional military reading lists have existed for a long time in the U.S. military and in other national militaries. They are frequently updated and intended to enhance the professional knowledge of military professionals in areas ranging from cultural awareness, ethics, leadership, international relations, military history and military operations, and areas of expertise considered essential to successfully executing the operations of their military service branch. These lists are prepared by the leadership organizations of these armed services such as the Air Force Chief of Staff, U.S. Army’s Chief of Staff, Chief of Naval Operations, and Marine Corps Commandant. Such readings are …

Brazil Space: Military Dependency And The Case Of The Geostationary Satellite Of Defense And Strategic Communications, Gills Vilar Lopes

Space and Defense

In Brazil, there has been no transition model of space capabilities promoted by the military sphere (especially the Brazilian Air Force) for nurturing the civil one (Brazilian Space Agency). Drawing upon official documents and legislation as primary sources, the case study of the Geostationary Satellite of Defense and Strategic Communications (SGDC) is analyzed in light of the space strategic sector. Main factors that impede the PEB are related to military-technological dependence and poor resource management, with draconian budget cuts and projects canceled before having achieved realistic milestones.

Attack On The Brain: Neurowars And Neurowarfare, Armin Krishnan

Space and Defense

Is neurotechnology leading nation-states toward a new domain of war? Neuroscience is on the verge of deciphering the human brain. As a result, brains will become a part of the battlefield against which attacks will be directed. As neuroscientist James Giordano argued: “the brain is the next battlespace.” It is foreseeable that this will have tremendous implications for warfare and could amount to a true military revolution in the sense of military historian Williamson Murray: it would completely change the characteristics of conflict, as well as transform state and society.

The Black Sea Grain Initiative : Analysing The Emerging, Implementation And Challenges, Mariami Kakabadze

World Maritime University Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Arms Control And Deterrence In The Age Of Cross-Domain Coercion, Damon Coletta

Space and Defense

For deterrence, now, first seek arms control. The old relationship linking deterrence, defense, and arms control served U.S. policy makers for decades during the Cold War. It was manifest through the Spirit of Geneva (1955) and the Reykjavik Summit (1986). Much later, during the rise of cross-domain coercion and following Russia’s annexation of Crimea, the same idea reemerged in NATO’s Warsaw Communique (2016).

Communicating Cyber Consequences, Timothy Goines

Space and Defense

More consideration ought to be accorded “loud” cyber weapons for signaling resolve in 21st century deterrence contests.

“Deterrence is at times a necessary or useful instrument of foreign policy, but the correct and prudent use of deterrence strategy is by no means self-evident or easily determined in all circumstances.”

In their seminal text, Alexander L. George and Richard Smoke thoroughly examined the topic of deterrence, tracing its historical roots and conducting case studies on its use. The product of this intense study was a formula that encapsulates the essence of deterrence theory. “In its simplest form, deterrence is merely a …

China's Military Space Strategy: A Dialectical Materialism Perspective, Sam Rouleau

Space and Defense

China’s military space strategy accommodates in significant ways the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP’s) ideological commitment to dialectical materialism. This Marxian commitment persists and manifests in China’s investment in space power despite the Party’s widely acknowledged development of state capitalism to guide China’s economy.

Cadet Voice: Hypersonic Weapons' Effect On Stragetic Stability, Darren Sency

Space and Defense

Initial exploration of the relationship between new technologies and strategic stability finds that hypersonic weapons, regardless of which power deploys them, first, could raise the probability of nuclear war.

Cadet Voice: Extended Deterrence And Resilience In The Baltic States, Liam J. Connolly

Space and Defense

The following USAFA cadet independent study was supported by the Academy’s Nuclear Weapons & Strategy minor and the Cadet Summer Language Immersion Program to Lithuania. With minor formatting changes, the paper here appears as submitted to the USSTRATCOM Larry D. Welch Writing Award and the summer Deterrence Symposium (Omaha, NE), July 31-Aug. 1, 2019, where it won junior division, first place.

Since the end of the Second World War the United States has practiced extended deterrence as a means of resisting Russian expansion and aggression. In Europe, the US has done this with the support of the North Atlantic Treaty …

Cadet Voice: Artificial Intelligence And Stability In Nuclear Crises, Marshall D. Foster

Space and Defense

The following USAFA cadet independent study, with the exception of minor grammatical corrections, is produced as presented at the winter conference of the Project on Nuclear Issues (PONI), Center for Strategic and International Studies, Washington, D.C., Dec. 11, 2019 (https://www.csis.org/events/poni- 2019-winter-conference).

Technological advances in artificial intelligence (AI) by the United States, China and Russia jeopardize the longstanding nuclear peace that the world has enjoyed since the end of the Cold War.1 The desire to obtain AI capabilities for the purpose of strengthening defense and security postures could spur a new arms race among these powerful nuclear states, and the United …

Deterrence In Cyberspace: A Game-Theoretic Approach, Abderrahman Sokri

Space and Defense

This novel application of the Stackelberg leader-follower game from economic theory illuminates situational constraints that point to a sweet spot, an optimal level of investment in cyber defense, for deterrence by denial.

Deterrence is a form of persuasion intended to manipulate the cost-benefit analysis of would-be attackers and convince them that the cost of taking an action against the defender outweighs its potential benefit (Brantly, 2018; Wilner, 2017).1 It is the prevention (of a target) from committing unwanted behavior by fear of the consequences (United States (US) Department of Defense (DoD), 2008; Taipale, 2010). Deterrence differs from compellence by focusing …

Duffer's Drift And Space Operations, Roger Wortman

Space and Defense

Defence of Duffer’s Drift, a popular Boer War tale among British infantry officers, teaches lessons for the future of space operations.

Published in the early 20th Century, The Defence of Duffer's Drift is a work of fiction written as an educational tool for small unit leaders. The novella outlines the experiences for a young lieutenant and his tumultuous path to success when charge with defending key terrain. Told through a series of dreams, Duffer's Drift provides multiple tactical lessons through and iterative process, each building on the previous sequence. The officer fails multiple times while learning from various mistakes while …

Book Review: Spies, Lies, And Algorithms: The History And Future Of American Intelligence, Claire Benedix

Space and Defense

The security environment is entering a new threat landscape; one that must be fought in both the physical and virtual world. The seemingly instantaneous progress of digitization and the cyberspace domain threatens to destabilize traditional warfare strategies and intelligence norms. Amy Zegart, an American academic and leading national security expert, outlines the history and future of American intelligence with a specific emphasis on emerging cyber threats in the digital age. In Spies, Lies, and Algorithms, Zegart explains the roles of technological breakthroughs in a world of big data by chronicling the history of intelligence education and organizational reform, the evolution …

Book Review: The Origins Of Victory: How Disruptive Military Innovation Determines The Fates Of Great Powers, Zachery Tyson Brown

Parameters Bookshelf – Online Book Reviews

Author: Andrew F. Krepinevich Jr.

Reviewed by Zachery Tyson Brown, defense analyst, Office of the Secretary of Defense

Andrew F. Krepinevich has questions for policymakers when it comes to emerging technologies and warfare. In The Origins of Victory: How Disruptive Military Innovation Determines the Fates of Great Powers, Krepinevich asks: How do states gain advantages in military competition during periods of disruptive change? How are developmental technologies best incorporated into legacy military structures? Or are entirely new structures necessary?

Book Review: Four Battlegrounds: Power In The Age Of Artificial Intelligence, Robert J. Bunker

Parameters Bookshelf – Online Book Reviews

Author: Paul Scharre

Reviewed by Dr. Robert J. Bunker, director of research and analysis, managing partner, C/O Futures, LLC

Award-winning author Paul Scharre’s latest work, Four Battlegrounds: Power in the Age of Artificial Intelligence, envisions artificial intelligence as ushering in a “new industrial revolution” with big military, economic, and political implications. The reviewer sees this “readable, tightly structured” book as “fascinating and important work from a US national security studies perspective” and “after-hours supplemental reading for US military and policy professionals who want to understand the political-military importance of AI and its strategic (in fact, civilizational) implications for the future.”

Empowering Host Nation Counter-Ied And Counter-Insurgency Efforts: Innovative Application Of Ordnance Recycling, Lynna Banach, Commodore Roy Vincent T. Trinidad, Captain Julien B. Dolor

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

As the United States works to grow its defense partnership with the Philippines, the country continues to fight instability and insecurity amidst a lengthy battle against insurgent and terrorist groups.[i]^,[ii],[iii] As the overlap between urban areas and conflict zones increases, and with violent groups’ use of improvised explosive devices (IEDs) against government forces, the danger to civilians escalates.[iv] This paper provides a deeper understanding of how the prevalence of unexploded ordnance (UXO) and the use of IEDs in the Philippines fuel the realities of insurgency and humanitarian danger in the country. Furthermore, using Golden …