Dr. Enrico Fels discussed the extent to which countries compete for influence, resources, and the placement of national infrastructure in orbit. Events such as the flood disaster in the Ahr Valley or the Russian attack on Ukraine have made it clear how closely many security-related issues are linked to space.
China and Russia, for example, are already conducting experiments aimed at espionage or the targeted jamming and spoofing of enemy satellite data. Although there are no open military conflicts in space yet, the so-called dual-use problem illustrates that many civilian satellites can also be used for military purposes at any time.
With regard to Germany, Fels pointed out that space security policy is anchored in the current coalition agreement. The new space security strategy serves to strengthen the protection and resilience of national and international space activities. Although there have been no large-scale failures in North Rhine-Westphalia to date, a prolonged failure of the US GPS system, for example, would have serious consequences for stock market trading, logistics, air traffic, and emergency services.
Finally, Fels pointed out the increasing strategic importance of the moon. The new race to the moon is much more than a prestige project – it is about access to future communications, navigation, and raw material infrastructures beyond Earth's atmosphere. In addition to the actual presence of humans, robotics and the development of new energy infrastructure on the moon will play a central role.