US-Japan-Asia Space Security Relations, 10:30-12:00 ET, Washington DC

Visiting Fellow, East-West Center in Washington

Department of Political Science, University of Washington

James Clay Moltz (Discussant)

Professor, Department of National Security Affairs & the Space Systems Academic Group,Naval Postgraduate School

Over the past two decades, countries around the globe have become increasingly dependent on outer space for civil, military, and commercial purposes. Yet recent events in space have threatened its peaceful use, including provocative satellite shootings and the ever-growing threat of space debris. Moreover, new entrants to the once-exclusive group of space-faring nations present a challenge to existing space powers, bringing divergent views about the appropriate use of space.

Ms. Pryor will argue that Japan-as the United States' primary security partner in the Pacific, a top collaborator in space technology, and a significant space power in in its own right-has a unique opportunity to work together with the US to protect the global commons of space. This opportunity is enhanced by the recent revisions in Japan's legal and government-level approaches to space, industry's growing interest in space technology, and the United States' recent "pivot to Asia." Japan, if it can seize the strategic initiative, can play a key role in space security relations in the region. If Japan doesn't clarify its space strategy soon, however, it may be passed over for countries with a more cohesive understanding of the role space plays in their national security policy.