Spring School: Outer Space Cooperation in the Middle East 2026

May 17-19, 2026 | Time and Place will be announced

The space-based infrastructure has performed various vital tasks for ourplanet, which have become indispensable for the functioning of all ultra-modern industrialized societies. This includes error-free navigation viaglobal satellite-based navigation systems such as Galileo, Glonass, orGPS (Global Positioning System), but also the functioning of energysupply, stock exchange trading, ATMs, weather forecasting, therecording of data and trends on climate change and the transmission ofcritical data and information to the military. The dependence onsatellites for communication, data collection, and crisis response willcontinue to increase. As dependence on space resources grows, so doesthe potential to influence the people, institutions, systems, and statesthat depend on them through strategic technological control.

Extraterrestrial space, the fifth domain of human civilization — afterland, sea, air, and cyberspace — is a place for the projection of powerand power politics of and between states with enormous economic,military, and strategic consequences for the entire internationalcommunity. As a new arena of competition, space is exposed to tensionsbetween major powers, while middle and regional powers are alsointerested in space due to its promising strategic advantages.

The space sector is also gaining strategic importance in the Middle Eastregion. Investments in space technologies promote economic progressand create new industries and jobs. Countries such as the United ArabEmirates and Saudi Arabia are investing heavily in their space programsas part of their national visions, which are driving technological progressand regional development. Other actors, such as Egypt and Oman, arealso increasingly interested in the sector. Developing comprehensivespace infrastructures requires considerable investment, increasingcompetition for limited resources. Military applications in spaceintensify the security dilemma, while geopolitical alliances furtherinfluence competition.

At the same time, space also offers opportunities for cooperation amongcountries in the region, particularly between states that pursueambitious space programs. This harbors enormous potential foreconomic progress, security and regional stability, technologicalinnovation, and international cooperation.
The spring school is organized by ICI, JGSP, GSP and CASSIS Bonn, bringing together expertise from various institutions to explore the strategic, technological, and cooperative dimensions of space. 

Participation by invitation only.