On 16 February 2024, ESPI Director, Hermann Ludwig Moeller, and Research Fellow and Lead on Security & Defence, Mathieu Bataille, attended the 4th edition of the Munich Security Conference (MSC) Space Night side event, organized by Bundesverband der Deutschen Industrie e.V. (BDI) and Vereinigung der Bayerischen Wirtschaft e.V. (VBW).
Director Moeller was invited to speak on the panel discussing “The 21st Century Space Race: Why Western Sovereignty in Space Matters”. The announcement of an alleged Russian nuclear anti-satellite weapon cast its shadow on the event, and our Director recalled that, while more needs to be known on the situation, massive disruption in orbit would be catastrophic to Earth activities. Regarding the current launcher crisis in Europe, he noted that this should not let us forget that launchers are a means to a purpose, leveraging space systems at best for prosperity and peace on Earth.
ESPI’s participation at this important forum comes at a critical time as space-related security and defence topics reach an inflection point both in Europe and abroad. To avoid falling behind its competitors and partners, Europe must increase its investments and political will in space security and defence, as recalled in ESPI2040: Space for Prosperity, Peace and Future Generations . This applies to both security and defence activities in space and on Earth, as the current international context makes the latter a key pillar of the space sector’s evolution.
– Mathieu Bataille, ESPI Research Fellow and Lead on Security & Defence.
Taking stock of this context, this year’s ESPI Autumn Conference will tackle the security and defence dimension of space under the theme of “Scaling European Space Capabilities for Security & Defence: From Ambition to Implementation”.
The MSC is the biggest event on international security policy in the world, and ESPI is proud to have contributed to showcasing the criticality of space in tackling security and defence challenges!
A selection of photos from the event can be found below.
