File:ASIAN STATE RESPONSES TO CHINA’S SPACE POWER STRATEGY (IA asianstaterespon1094562802).pdf

China’s rise as a space power has coincided with its quest for hegemony in the Indo-Pacific. Advances in China’s space capabilities constitute a threat to regional states’ national security, economic competitiveness, and national prestige. Accordingly, regional space powers have revised their strategies to better compete with China. This thesis examines Japan’s, India’s, and Vietnam’s renewed approaches to space power and space security amidst China’s rise. Shifts in military, commercial, and civil space policy are examined among the selected case studies. This thesis finds that Asian states are departing from historical norms by employing militarized space assets to counter the security threat from China. They are also allowing the private sector to play a larger role in their commercial space industry to improve efficiency, innovative capacity, and diplomatic outreach. Bilateral and multilateral cooperation, as well as investments in techno-nationalist space-science projects, also supplement the renewed soft-power response to Chinese space diplomacy. This thesis presents policy prescriptions for the United States to capitalize on the increasing degree of alignment among regional space powers’ strategic interests. Recommendations include enhanced military-to-military relations, relaxation of commercial restrictions, and increased cooperation in civil space to balance against China.

Subjects: space; space power; China; Vietnam; India; Japan; civil; commercial; military; diplomacy; soft power; internal balancing; external balancing; balance of power