• Forum
• SITREP
• Military
• WMD
• Intelligence
• Homeland Security

• Space

• Introduction
• Systems
• Facilities
• Agencies
• Countries
• Hot Documents
• News
• Reports
• Policy
• Budget
• Congress
• Links

• Public Eye

3.4 Space as a contribution to the CFSP, the ESDP and to the anticipation and monitoring of humanitarian crises.

Space has a security dimension and security has a space dimension

Space technology, infrastructure and services are an essential support to one of the most rapidly evolving EU policies  the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) including European Security and Defence Policy (ESDP). Most space systems are inherently capable of multiple use and the credibility of the above policies will be significantly strengthened by taking better advantage of space applications.

ESDP needs access to suitable space-based systems and services, both because of their strategic capabilities and because they confer a capacity for autonomous decision-making. Nowadays, most of the information used at the EU level comes from satellites operated in national or bilateral or intergovernmental frameworks. It is essential to guarantee access in the long term to strategic information for collective use by EU Member States by supporting space infrastructures.

Space-based assets can deliver a higher level of security for citizens, especially in an enlarged Union. Their powers of surveillance allow for a better enforcement of border and coastal restrictions and, therefore, more effective controls on illegal immigration and trafficking. They can also enhance conflict prevention by keeping a close watch on potential security threats and identifying humanitarian crises in their early stages.

The European Union Military Committee has clearly stated that space assets can be efficient tools for crisis management operations. For its part, the EU Political and Security Committee has recommended further reflection on how to ensure that security and defence aspects are taken into account in the determination of EU space policy and its programmes.

It is obvious that security and military users have special requirements and protocols will have to be established to reconcile military and civil use of multiple-use assets. This will have to take into account, for example, the military requirement to retain control of exclusive access to certain categories of information, with a real-time capacity for reaction.

No single Member State will ever have the means to develop and support the full range of the necessary capabilities and better value for money could be achieved by various forms of co-operation at the EU level. Approaches should be developed to ensure dual use of space assets in function of user requirements defined at a European level. In addition to telecoms and observation satellites already used for security purposes, further developments are needed in the field of global monitoring, positioning, navigation and timing and communication, signal intelligence, early warning and space surveillance, to meet the security objectives of the EU and of its Member States.

With regard to Global Monitoring, a large part of the observation requirements stemming from security and defence needs are planned to be fulfilled by the services that will be delivered through GMES. The expected benefits are the development of tools to support:

• monitoring of compliance with Treaties;
• surveillance of borders;
• surveillance of critical sites and installations;
• anticipation and monitoring of humanitarian crises.

The EU should establish the organisation necessary for the GMES services to meet the Unions collective requirements for imagery and mapping for security, taking into account existing structures.

Overall, GMES could contribute to humanitarian and rescue tasks, peacekeeping and supporting combat forces in crisis management tasks including peacemaking.

The multinational military initiative, Common Operational Requirements for a European Global Satellite System to which six EU countries have subscribed, describes the common operational specifications needed to develop a military global satellite observation system. This agreement, which needs to be extended to other EU Member States, represents a useful instrument for defining a European approach vis-à-vis ground segment and infrastructure.

With regard to signals intelligence, early warning and space surveillance, and in order to build up over the long term a comprehensive EU space-based security capability, Europe will also need developments of systems and services in the fields of:

• signals intelligence required to monitor electromagnetic activities;
• early detection of activities leading to missiles proliferation;
• space surveillance allowing the EU an autonomous capacity to detect and identify space objects.

A specific effort might also be needed to ensure that Europe has the capacity to supply to the different users critical information on solar flares, near Earth objects, space debris, (space weather prediction).

A great deal of assessment is still needed about the capabilities and role of space policy in support of defence and security. The Commission, for its part, is prepared to contribute to an overall assessment of existing capacities and future requirements and identification of the additional investments needed for the development of a comprehensive EU space-based defence and security capability.

Recommended Actions

• The Commission and Member States to establish a report, through an EU dedicated working group composed of relevant representatives drawn from EU, Member States, ESA and space organisations regrouping civil and military space users, at the end of 2004 on:
• the current EU needs for multiple-use capabilities needs;
• the link with the European Armaments Research and Capabilities Agency (currently under definition);
• the organisation of access to imagery taking into account work on the way in the European Capability Action Plan;
• the potential role of the EU Satellite Centre and the role of ESA.
• The Commission to ensure its preparatory action on security research is launched early in 2004.