---
title: "NATO Plans to Launch Its Strategy for Militarizing Space This Week"
description: "Later this week, NATO officials are expected to announce the a strategy for militarizing outer space as individual nations ramp up weapons programs."
date: "2019-06-25"
modified: "2019-06-25"
authors:
  - name: "Dan Robitzski"
    link: "https://futurism.com/authors/danrobitzski"
url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/nato-strategy-militarizing-space"
categories:
  - "Off-World"
  - "Space"
tags:
  - "military"
  - "nato"
  - "space"
  - "the digest"
---

# NATO Plans to Launch Its Strategy for Militarizing Space This Week

![Later this week, NATO officials are expected to announce the a strategy for militarizing outer space as individual nations ramp up weapons programs.](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/nato-launch-strategy-militarizing-space.jpg>)
*\<em\>Image: Victor Tangermann\</em\>*

## Space Alliance

NATO officials are expected to unveil their strategy for operations in outer space later this week.

The military and trade alliance has taken stabs at space policy before, but now officials say space has become "more congested, contested and competitive," [reports *Agence France-Presse*](<https://phys.org/news/2019-06-countdown-nato-space-strategy.html>). As more and more countries like [America](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/darpa-missile-nukes-sound>), [Russia](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/russian-military-testing-lasers-hypersonic-weapons>), China, [and India](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/india-developing-space-weapons>) demonstrate their abilities to launch and destroy satellites, NATO has become increasingly motivated to prepare for a future where space becomes a new battleground for international conflict.

## Bargaining Chip

NATO is expected to rely on a network of member nation-owned satellites, an unnamed official told *AFP*, in order to set up defenses against any Russian or Chinese aggression.

"Space is part of our daily lives, and while it can be used for peaceful purposes, it can also be used for aggression," said NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, per *AFP*. "Satellites can be jammed, hacked or weaponized. Anti-satellite weapons could cripple communications, so it is important that we are vigilant and resilient."

The NATO official also suggested that the emphasis on space was intended in part as a peace offering to President Trump, who in the past criticized NATO members for how much they spent on defense and who also repeatedly [called for a Space Force](<https://futurism.com/house-kills-space-force-space-corps>) in the U.S.

**READ MORE:** [Countdown to NATO space strategy](<https://phys.org/news/2019-06-countdown-nato-space-strategy.html>) \[*Agence France-Presse* via *Phys.org*\]

**More on space weapons:** *[India Just Announced That It's Developing Space Weapons](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/india-developing-space-weapons>)*

## Author
Dan Robitzki is a senior reporter for Futurism, where he likes to cover AI, tech ethics, and medicine. He spends his extra time fencing and streaming games from Los Angeles, California.

### Author social links  
[Twitter](<https://x.com/danrobitzski>)