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Nations must seek permission of US to enter outer space
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| dEsidEL |
Bush reasserted America's claim to outter space today. Alpha Centauri reported as the new 51st state. lol..
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Space off limits to hostile nations: U.S
Bush policy stresses defence
Critics fear weapons in orbit
Oct. 19, 2006. 05:18 AM
MARC KAUFMAN
SPECIAL TO THE STAR
WASHINGTON—U.S. President George W. Bush has quietly signed a new National Space Policy that asserts his country's right to deny access to space to anyone "hostile to U.S. interests."
The policy also rejects future arms-control agreements that might limit U.S. flexibility in space.
The document characterizes the role of U.S. space diplomacy largely in terms of persuading other nations to support U.S. policy, encourages private enterprise in space and emphasizes security issues.
"Freedom of action in space is as important to the United States as air power and sea power," the document, a revision of the U.S.'s previous space policy, asserts in its introduction.
The Bush administration bluntly denied the revisions were a prelude to introducing weapons systems into orbit.
"This policy is not about developing or deploying weapons in space. Period," said a senior administration official, who asked to remain unnamed.
Nevertheless, Michael Krepon, co-founder of the Henry L. Stimson Center, a non-partisan think-tank that follows the space-weaponry issue, said the policy changes will reinforce international suspicions that the U.S. may seek to develop, test and deploy space weapons.
The concerns are amplified, he said, by the Bush administration's refusal to enter negotiations or even less formal discussions on the subject.
Theresa Hitchens, director of the non-partisan Center for Defence Information in Washington, said the policy "kicks the door a little more open to a space-war fighting strategy" and has a "very unilateral tone to it."
The Bush administration official strongly disagreed with that characterization, saying the policy encourages international diplomacy and co-operation.
But the official said the document also makes clear the U.S. position: that no new arms-control agreements are needed because there is no space arms race.
The document, the first revision of U.S. space policy in nearly 10 years, was signed by Bush more than a month ago but was not publicly announced.
Unclassified details of his decision were posted on the website of the U.S. Office of Science and Technology Policy.
National Security Council spokesman Frederick Jones said in written comments that an update was needed to "reflect the fact that space has become an even more important component of U.S. economic, national and homeland security."
The military has become increasingly dependent on satellite communication and navigation, as have providers of cellphones, personal navigation devices and even ATMs.
The Bush official said the administration has briefed members of Congress as well as a number of governments, including Russia, on the new policy.
The National Space Policy follows other administration statements that appeared to advocate greater military use of space.
In 2004, the Air Force published a Counterspace Operations Doctrine that called for a more active military posture in space and said that protecting U.S. satellites and spacecraft may require "deception, disruption, denial, degradation and destruction."
Four years earlier, a congressionally chartered panel led by U.S. Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld recommended developing space weapons to protect military and civilian satellites.
Because of the political sensitivities, several analysts said, the Pentagon probably will not move forward quickly with space weapons but rather will work on dual-use technology that can serve military and civilian interests.
But because many space initiatives are classified, Krepon and others said, it is difficult to know what is being developed and deployed.
Some of the potential space weapons most frequently discussed are lasers that can "blind" or shut down adversary satellites and small, manoeuvrable satellites that could ram another satellite.
The new Bush policy calls on the defence secretary to provide "space capabilities" to support missile-warning systems as well as "multi-layered and integrated missile defences," an apparent nod toward placing some components of the system in space.
The new document grew out of Bush's 2002 order to the National Security Council, with support from the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, to assess America's military and civilian space policies.
A number of nations have pushed for talks to ban space weapons, and the United States has long been one of a handful of nations opposed to the idea.
Although it had abstained in the past when proposals to ban space weapons came up in the United Nations, last October the United States voted for the first time against a call for negotiations — the only "no" against 160 "yes" votes.
The U.S. position flows in part from the fact so many key weapons systems are now dependent on information and communications from orbiting satellites, analysts said.
The U.S. military has developed and deployed far more space-based technology than any other nation, giving it great strategic advantages.
But with the superior technology has come a perceived vulnerability to attacks on essential satellites.
The new policy was applauded by defence analyst Baker Spring of the conservative Heritage Foundation.
Spring said he supported the policy's rejection of international agreements or treaties, as well as its emphasis on protecting military assets and placing missile defence components in space.
News of the policy was being widely discussed at an international symposium on personal spaceflight in Las Cruces, New Mexico yesterday.
Some delegates said the possibility of a greater U.S. military interest in controlling space would, if anything, be favourable to emerging private companies.
"The military is developing things that will spin-off to us. And if we develop things, they'll spin-off to them," said George French, chairman and CEO of Rocketplane Kistler, a company that's working on both space tourism and on developing a supply vehicle for NASA.
There was a note of caution, however, from Michael Simpson, president of the International Space University in France.
"On the one hand, it worries people like me who would really love to believe that space will be a place where we don't take our combat and our history of conflict with one another," Simpson told the Star's Scott Simmie.
"The concern, and where the rest of the world has got to get involved, is how do you decide what is a threat, and what is really the legitimate use of space by someone else?"
The Washington Post
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source:
http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/Co...id=968332188492
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| Jayx1 |
| the rest of the world wont let this happen |
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| rabbitjoker |
This is good news.
A hostile nation with access to space presents a significant risk for freedom and democracy loving peoples. |
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| Halycon |
| quote: | Originally posted by rabbitjoker
This is good news.
A hostile nation with access to space presents a significant risk for freedom and democracy loving peoples. |
sounds like the U.S alotta the time |
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| thesauce23 |
| quote: | Originally posted by Jayx1
the rest of the world wont let this happen |
i.e. War in IRAQ |
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| MLB |
| quote: | Originally posted by Jayx1
the rest of the world wont let this happen |
lol as i thought...:haha: |
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| infinity HiGH |
| quote: | Originally posted by rabbitjoker
This is good news.
A hostile nation with access to space presents a significant risk for freedom and democracy loving peoples. |
Space doesn't belong to the US. They should have no say in who gets to go and who doesn't. Not to mention that "hostile" nations aren't even close to acquiring technology that would make them a threat of any sort to the "freedom" and "democracy" lovers out there. |
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| Cosmic Fur |
This is sooo ed up. First,
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U.S. President George W. Bush has quietly signed a new National Space Policy that asserts his country's right to deny access to space to anyone "hostile to U.S. interests."
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Nice and vague, just the way USA likes it. What exactly is hostile to US interests? Last time I checked, US was doing all of the hostilities around the world. Or do we blame the countries for the acts of terrorists residing in those counries? Secondly, who made USA the ing governing nation of the entire world? Why do they alone have to power to decide who gets access to space and who doesn't? Space is free territory - you can't just exercise control over what is not yours. This is such bull on soo many levels.
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A number of nations have pushed for talks to ban space weapons, and the United States has long been one of a handful of nations opposed to the idea.
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Obviously. :rolleyes:
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Although it had abstained in the past when proposals to ban space weapons came up in the United Nations, last October the United States voted for the first time against a call for negotiations — the only "no" against 160 "yes" votes.
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Yay USA! always fighting for the better of the entire world. :rolleyes: :rolleyes:
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The U.S. military has developed and deployed far more space-based technology than any other nation, giving it great strategic advantages.
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Wow, suddenly the reasoning for being against banning space weapons is crystal clear. And no it gives them a strategic advantage - "Yea, so we can have space weapons, but we also can dictate who can have them and who can't, essentially taking control over what isn't ours, and asserting military power and control over the rest of the world. Hahahah!" |
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| jon jon |
| quote: | Originally posted by rabbitjoker
This is good news.
A hostile nation with access to space presents a significant risk for freedom and democracy loving peoples. |
BAHAHHA oh RJ |
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| Time2Burn |
^^ Geeeez didn't you get the memo?
THE USA OWNS EVERYTHING! |
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| DeTrOiT_bEnDeR |
Your all just jealous we claimed Space ours first:) what a joke....
After reading that it suddenly got me in the mood to watch a little James Bond "Moonraker" |
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| infinity HiGH |
| quote: | Originally posted by DeTrOiT_bEnDeR
Your all just jealous we claimed Space ours first:) what a joke....
After reading that it suddenly got me in the mood to watch a little James Bond "Moonraker" |
What does a British spy have to do with this though? lol |
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