Outer Space Defense Programs and Space Law: Comparative Review of the US and China

Abstract

The emergence of outer space defense programs in the security agenda of the United States and the People's Republic of China relates to the technological and ideological competition that surfaced from the Cold War, the space race. Nevertheless, the initiation of the novel outer space defense programs defies the rule of law established by public international law with its young branch of space law. While the framework of space law originated from the consensus of the international community and the compromise between the US and the USSR, the original competitors of the space race, the conditions of the modern international system and the relationship between the US and the PRC are far from being ideal. Furthermore, the development of these outer space defense programs shines a light to the outdated and inconsistencies found in the regulations of space law, thus, a need for transformation and evolution is required in order to maintain the principles of peace and cooperation in the international community.