From Earth to Uchū: The Evolution of Japan’s Space Security Policy and a Blueprint for Strengthening the U.S.-Japan Space Security Partnership

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As Japan reckons with an increasingly tense security dynamic driven by growing Chinese and North Korean military activity and defense budgets, space capabilities are becoming integral to Japan’s national security. The U.S.-Japan security alliance continues to be at the core of both countries’ approaches to security and stability in the Indo-Pacific, with both seeking to deepen their cooperation across myriad national security areas, including in the space domain. Space is now a prominent agenda item in meetings between the U.S. president and Japanese prime minister, as well as several of their cabinet secretaries.

This report outlines the history of space programs in Japan and the country’s space capabilities, developments in space security after the 2008 Basic Space Law, international partnerships, regional space security observations, and alignment with the United States. It continues with a discussion of candidate areas to deepen or expand U.S.-Japan space security cooperation, including across missions and architectures, organizations, industrial and technology sectors, and within international forums. It also discusses potential barriers and limitations that need to be overcome to achieve greater cooperation.

The authors would like to thank Sumitomo Corporation for its support of the U.S.-Japan space cooperation project.

Aerospace

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