US-Japan Cooperation To Restrain China’s Space Arms Expansion

Published in Sankei News
(Japan) on 6 July 2021
by (link to originallink to original)
Translated from by Dorothy Phoenix. Edited by Patricia Simoni.
Japan must be on guard and increase its deterrence ability against China's space arms expansion.

On June 23, Chinese President Xi Jinping talked via teleconference with three astronauts who are staying at China's independent space station, which is under construction. Xi said that the construction of the space station “will make pioneering contributions to the peaceful use of outer space by humankind.”

It is difficult to believe Xi's words as he stated them. They do not guarantee that technology related to the space station will not be used for military purposes.

China is advancing its space development, spearheaded by military leadership, with an eye toward competing with the U.S. as a "space superpower." The three astronauts, who are affiliated with the military, stated to Xi that they are now "operating in orbit" and "proud of our great party and motherland." The astronauts are to stay for about three months, and are said to be verifying technologies used for long-term stays, such as robotic arm operation and extravehicular activities.

After a leadership summit on June 14, a statement from NATO, which is comprised of the U.S. and various European countries, declared that attacks on man-made satellites of NATO member nations are subject to the right of mutual self-defense.

Following a U.S.-Japan leadership summit, a joint statement released in April pledged a commitment "to deepen defense cooperation across all domains, including cyber and space." These statements are aimed at Chinese and Russian preparation for space arms expansion.

Through space development, China is trying to undermine the superiority of the U.S. military, which makes strong use of information from GPS and reconnaissance satellites.

In 2007, China was censured by the international community for spreading a large amount of debris (space trash) after an experiment that destroyed a satellite by missile. After the incident, it continued testing anti-satellite missiles, without further destruction. It is currently developing "killer satellites" and lasers for the purpose of destroying satellites.

Japan must make preparations in order to avoid falling victim to dysfunction caused by attacks on Japanese and U.S. communication and surveillance systems that rely on space.

On June 29, the Japanese government's Strategic Headquarters for Space Development decided on a plan to undertake engineering research, in order to launch a number of small-sized, man-made satellites into low earth orbit and construct a satellite constellation of small-sized satellites to be used for surveillance and communication. (A satellite constellation is a group of several satellites that work together.) The satellites can be used for purposes such as missile defense, disaster response and ocean condition monitoring. Last May, the Japan Self-Defense Force inaugurated its new Space Operation Squadron, and in June of that same year, a revision to the basic space policy touted a goal to "ensuring space security" as the number one priority.

In the end, protecting citizens is the most important issue. We hope to make haste in cooperating with the U.S. to improve deterrence ability in space.


中国の宇宙軍拡 日米協力で脅威を抑えよ

日本は、中国の宇宙分野の軍拡を警戒し、抑止力を高めるべきだ。

中国の習近平国家主席は6月23日、同国が独自に建設中の宇宙ステーションに滞在している宇宙飛行士3人とテレビ会議システムで対話した。習氏は宇宙ステーション建設が「人類の宇宙の平和利用にとって先駆的な貢献となる」と語った。

言葉通りには信用しがたい。宇宙ステーションの関連技術が軍事利用されない保証はない。

中国は、米国に対抗できる「宇宙強国」を目指し、軍主導で宇宙開発を進めてきた。軍所属の3人の宇宙飛行士は「宇宙にいても偉大な共産党と祖国を誇りに思う」と習氏に述べた。3人はおよそ3カ月の滞在で、ロボットアームの操作や船外活動など宇宙での長期滞在技術を検証するという。

米欧諸国でつくる北大西洋条約機構(NATO)は6月14日の首脳会議声明で、NATO加盟国の人工衛星などへの攻撃は集団的自衛権行使の対象になり得ると表明した。4月の日米首脳会談の共同声明は宇宙を含む「全ての領域を横断する防衛協力」の深化を誓った。これらには、中国やロシアの宇宙軍拡に備える狙いがある。

中国は宇宙開発で、衛星利用測位システム(GPS)や偵察衛星からの情報を駆使する米軍の優位性を突き崩そうとしている。

2007年にはミサイルによる衛星破壊実験で中国は大量のデブリ(宇宙ゴミ)をばらまき、国際的に批判された。その後も破壊を伴わない対衛星ミサイル実験を続けている。衛星破壊用の「キラー衛星」やレーザーも開発中だ。

日本は、自国や同盟国米国の宇宙を利用した通信・監視システムが攻撃され、機能不全に陥らないよう備える必要がある。

政府は6月29日の宇宙開発戦略本部で、多数の小型人工衛星を低軌道に投入し、警戒監視、通信に用いる小型衛星コンステレーション(複数基を協調運用する衛星群)構築の技術研究に着手する方針を決めた。ミサイル防衛や災害対応、海洋状況監視などに活用できる。昨年5月には自衛隊に「宇宙作戦隊」を発足させ、同年6月の宇宙基本計画改定では政策目標の筆頭に「宇宙安全保障の確保」を掲げた。

いずれも国民を守る上で重要だ。米国とも協力し、宇宙における抑止力の向上を急ぎたい。
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