Combined Space Operations Initiative principals board meeting

On 8-9 December 2021 (AEDT), the Combined Space Operations (CSpO) Initiative Principals Board – comprising representatives from Australia, Canada, France, Germany, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States – met in Cape Canaveral, Florida, to discuss cooperation on space security.

During this event, senior defence leaders underscored the importance of developing a shared understanding of the responsible uses of space, discussed opportunities for the interoperability of space systems, and explored ways to enhance collaboration between space operations centres.  

CSpO Participants expressed strong concerns about Russia’s debris-generating anti-satellite test on 15 November 2021, and welcomed the establishment of the United Nation’s Open-Ended Working Group on reducing space threats through norms, rules and principles of responsible behaviours.

CSpO Participants also called for all nations to refrain from conducting irresponsible and dangerous destructive testing which pollutes the space environment by generating debris, risks damaging space objects, and threatens the security of current and future space explorers.

Space is integral to daily life, enabling communications, navigation, remote sensing, Earth observation, weather services and financial transactions, as well as modern multi-domain military operations. Each of these services are intertwined with national security and the stability of international systems and the global economy.