Abstract
Outer space has increasingly shifted from a domain of scientific exploration to a critical arena of military, technological, and strategic competition. Satellite-based systems for communication, navigation, and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) now form the backbone of modern C4ISR architectures and precision warfare, while simultaneously underpinning essential civilian infrastructure such as finance, energy management, and global communications. The rapid expansion of low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite constellations, advances in artificial intelligence–enabled space operations, and the growing role of commercial actors have accelerated the dual-use and civil–military fusion of space activities, significantly intensifying space security risks.
The Russo-Ukrainian War highlighted these dynamics by demonstrating the operational significance of commercial space assets in armed conflict, as well as the vulnerabilities of space-based infrastructure to cyber and counterspace operations. These developments expose structural shortcomings in the existing international legal framework governing outer space. Although space is not a law-free zone, it remains law-deficient: current norms lack the specificity and enforcement mechanisms necessary to address emerging technologies and contemporary military practices.
This article examines the challenges posed by emerging space technologies from the perspective of international law. It first analyzes the military dimensions of the existing space law regime, particularly the five core United Nations space treaties, and their interaction with general international law, including the prohibition on the use of force and international humanitarian law. It then explores how dual-use technologies and commercial participation complicate legal distinctions between civilian and military objects. Using anti-satellite (ASAT) weapons as a case study, the article assesses issues of harmful interference, proportionality, space debris, and the sustainability of the orbital environment. Drawing on recent interpretative efforts such as the Woomera Manual, the article argues that while existing international law (lex lata) remains applicable to military space activities, significant normative gaps persist. It concludes by offering observations on the future development of international space law in response to accelerating militarization and technological change.