https://spacewatch.global/tag/nato/ AN INDEPENDENT PERSPECTIVE ON SPACE Mon, 26 Oct 2026 11:12:57 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.1.4 https://spacewatch.global/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/SpaceWatchGlobal-Sign-90x90.png https://spacewatch.global/tag/nato/ 32 32 https://spacewatch.global/2026/10/spacewatchgl-gray-space-cosmos-2612-vs-iceye-x36-washington-spoke-where-was-nato/ Mon, 26 Oct 2026 09:00:00 +0000 https://spacewatch.global/?p=79393
Written by Christophe Bosquillon.
A Russian satellite manoeuvred into extreme proximity with ICEYE-X36, prompting warnings from commercial space trackers and, eventually, Washington. Christophe Bosquillon asks why the encounter has yet to produce a comparable collective response from NATO.]]> https://spacewatch.global/2026/09/spacewatchgl-analysis-britain-stops-being-polite-in-space/ Fri, 25 Sep 2026 09:00:00 +0000 https://spacewatch.global/?p=78194 The first UK Space Power Conference, held in London on 23–24 September 2026, marked the moment Britain began treating space as terrain to be controlled. A new offensive space squadron, a "One Space" strategy and blunt calls to stop being polite: our analysis of what changed, what is still missing, and what to watch next.]]> https://spacewatch.global/2026/09/streeting-this-century-will-depend-on-control-of-space/ Wed, 23 Sep 2026 17:00:00 +0000 https://spacewatch.global/?p=78103 UK Defence Secretary Wes Streeting closed day one of the UK Space Power Conference by placing control of space at the heart of British deterrence, and warned that adversaries use satellite disruption to fuel populism.]]> https://spacewatch.global/2026/09/sdss-paris-mg-michael-traut-on-the-european-space-component-command-and-solving-interoperability/ Wed, 16 Sep 2026 18:00:00 +0000 https://spacewatch.global/?p=77827 From SDSS at World Space Business Week in Paris, Major General Michael Traut, Commander of the German Space Command, joins Torsten Kriening to explain where the European Space Component Command really stands, why interoperability is the domain's biggest challenge, and how a German-led protocol stack could solve it.]]> https://spacewatch.global/2026/09/spacewatchgl-recap-sdss-day-one-sovereignty-is-not-self-sufficiency/ Wed, 16 Sep 2026 09:00:00 +0000 https://spacewatch.global/?p=77779 Europe wants sovereign space capability, and Europe needs capability now. Those two sentences do not point in the same direction. From day one of the Space Defense & Security Summit in Paris: Germany's bid to become Europe's integrator, IRIS² built for crisis, and an industry quietly redefining what sovereignty means.]]> https://spacewatch.global/2026/08/leaf-space-completes-ground-station-install-at-spaceport-nova-scotia/ Tue, 25 Aug 2026 06:00:00 +0000 https://spacewatch.global/?p=76944 Leaf Space has extended its global ground-station network to Canada, completing an installation at Spaceport Nova Scotia with Maritime Launch Services.]]> https://spacewatch.global/2026/08/spacewatchgl-opinion-europes-orbital-future-innovation-integration-or-irrelevance/ Tue, 18 Aug 2026 08:00:00 +0000 https://spacewatch.global/?p=76438
Written by K.-P. Ludwig
SPRIND’s 2026 space strategy imagines a sovereign European orbital economy built on innovation and autonomy. But the U.S. Space Command’s SWE 2040 describes a very different future: a contested domain shaped by interoperability, resilience and military integration. Can Europe pursue both sovereignty and integration, or will it ultimately have to choose?]]> https://spacewatch.global/2026/07/spacewatchgl-opinion-freya-and-the-illusion-of-a-shield/ Wed, 22 Jul 2026 08:00:00 +0000 https://spacewatch.global/?p=75810
Written by K.-P. Ludwig
Freya may strengthen Europe's air defence, but missiles alone do not create a European shield. This analysis argues that true Integrated Air and Missile Defense begins with shared operational leadership, linking space-based sensors, communications, command-and-control and interceptors into a single architecture.]]> https://spacewatch.global/2026/07/spacewatchgl-opinion-the-space-economy-now-wears-a-uniform-is-europe-ready/ Tue, 21 Jul 2026 08:00:00 +0000 https://spacewatch.global/?p=75794 Fifty-three percent of the world's government space spending now goes to defence. Analysing ESA's Report on the Space Economy 2026, SpaceWatch.Global publisher Torsten Kriening argues the space economy has become a defence economy - and that Europe, an order of magnitude behind the US and China, must now decide whether it will be a shareholder or a customer. ]]> https://spacewatch.global/2026/07/five-european-defense-companies-form-consortium-to-develop-sovereign-exo-atmospheric-missile-interceptor/ Thu, 16 Jul 2026 06:00:00 +0000 https://spacewatch.global/?p=75696 Airbus Defence and Space, Destinus, MBDA Deutschland, Safran, and Thales have signed an LoI forming the Bliksem EXO Consortium to develop a sovereign European exo-atmospheric interceptor against ballistic-missile threats.]]> https://spacewatch.global/2026/07/spacewatchgl-opinion-the-new-high-ground-colonel-sylvain-debarre-on-the-strategic-evolution-of-the-nato-space-centre-of-excellence/ Wed, 01 Jul 2026 08:00:00 +0000 https://spacewatch.global/?p=75304
Written by Laura Todd
In the heart of Toulouse, a city long synonymous with aviation and aerospace excellence, a new chapter in transatlantic security is being written. The NATO Space Centre of Excellence (COE), established in 2023, stands as a testament to the fundamental shift in how the modern world perceives and protects the orbital domain. ]]> https://spacewatch.global/2026/06/spacewatchgl-analysis-allied-by-design-part-2-what-americas-cislunar-ambitions-mean-for-europe/ Thu, 11 Jun 2026 08:00:00 +0000 https://spacewatch.global/?p=74695
Written by Christophe Bosquillon
As the U.S. Space Force expands its focus beyond GEO and into cislunar space, Europe faces difficult questions about sovereignty, industrial capacity, defence cooperation, and its long-term role in the emerging Earth-Moon economy.]]> https://spacewatch.global/2026/05/isar-aerospace-signs-with-maritime-launch-services-for-additional-rocket-launch-capacity-in-canada/ Wed, 27 May 2026 06:00:00 +0000 https://spacewatch.global/?p=74221 Isar Aerospace has signed a memorandum of understanding with Maritime Launch Services, operator of the Nova Scotia Spaceport in Canada, to establish sovereign launch capabilities for orbital missions from Canada. As a result, future Isar Aerospace rockets will launch from the MLS-operated spaceport. ]]> https://spacewatch.global/2026/05/geoint-2026-day-two-pino-nobile-natos-geoint-mastermind-on-ai-policy-space-domain/ Tue, 19 May 2026 08:00:00 +0000 https://spacewatch.global/?p=73998 At GEOINT 2026 in Aurora, Colorado, Torsten Kriening spoke with Pino Nobile, who leads the GEOINT and Space Services Section at NATO headquarters.]]> https://spacewatch.global/2026/05/spacewatchgl-analysis-geoint-2026-the-pipeline-is-the-mission-and-europe-is-falling-behind-on-the-plumbing/ Fri, 15 May 2026 09:00:00 +0000 https://spacewatch.global/?p=73911
Written by Torsten Kriening
GEOINT 2026 in Aurora delivered an uncomfortable diagnosis: the era of competing for collection is over. The real contest is now integration, governance and trustworthy AI - and Europe is falling behind on the plumbing. Torsten Kriening analyses what the symposium means for Berlin and Brussels.]]> https://spacewatch.global/2026/05/spacewatchgl-analysis-the-eu-space-act-and-why-turkiye-should-pay-attention/ Tue, 12 May 2026 08:00:00 +0000 https://spacewatch.global/?p=73797
Written by Berna Akçalı Gür, PhD
As the EU Space Act advances through the legislative process, its implications are expected to extend well beyond EU borders. For Türkiye, the regulation presents both a compliance challenge and a strategic opportunity, particularly for operators involved in launch services, satellite activities, and cooperation with European partners. This article examines the legal, geopolitical, and industrial implications of the EUSA for Türkiye’s emerging space sector.]]> https://spacewatch.global/2026/05/geoint-2026-day-two-global-perspectives-ai-at-the-edge-and-australias-strategic-vision/ Wed, 06 May 2026 09:30:00 +0000 https://spacewatch.global/?p=73611 Day Two of USGIF GEOINT 2026 in Denver featured global perspectives from NATO, the UK, Canada, and Japan, an AI Inflection Point panel on 3D data and human-in-the-loop challenges, and a keynote by Kathryn McMullan, Director of the Australian Geospatial-Intelligence Organisation, on Indo-Pacific security and partnerships.]]> https://spacewatch.global/2026/05/geoint-2026-day-one-highlights-ai-allied-integration-and-commercial-geoint-take-center-stage/ Tue, 05 May 2026 09:30:00 +0000 https://spacewatch.global/?p=73599 The 2026 USGIF GEOINT Symposium opened in Denver with AI, allied integration, and commercial GEOINT dominating the agenda. NATO's Major General Paul Lynch keynoted on closing integration gaps, while industry showcased mission impact from Ukraine to the Indo-Pacific.]]> https://spacewatch.global/2026/04/nato-space-center-of-excellence-nato-space-deterrence-mg-devin-pepper-on-sword-vs-shield/ Thu, 30 Apr 2026 10:30:00 +0000 https://spacewatch.global/?p=73459 Laura Todd talks with Major General Devin Pepper, Deputy Chief of Staff for Strategic Plans and Policy at NATO ACT, at the NATO Space Center of Excellence Conference in Toulouse. Discover NATO's deterrence strategy, the new Space Data Marketplace, and why "you can't deter with just a shield—you need a sword.]]> https://spacewatch.global/2026/04/spacewatchgl-opinion-pax-germanica/ Thu, 30 Apr 2026 09:00:00 +0000 https://spacewatch.global/?p=73360
Written by Gilles Rabin
France strengthens its sovereign military model. Germany builds Europe's strongest conventional force inside NATO. The divergence couldn't be clearer - and it's reshaping the future of European defence space from FCAS to SatComBw 4.]]>