NATIONAL SECURITY 

SPACE STRATEGY 

UNCLASSIFIED SUMMARY 

 
 
TABLE OF CONTENTS 

PREFACE .................................................................................................................................. i

THE STRATEGIC ENVIRONMENT ..................................................................................... 1

STRATEGIC OBJECTIVES .................................................................................................... 4

STRATEGIC APPROACHES ................................................................................................. 5

Promoting Responsible, Peaceful, and Safe Use of Space ................................................ 5

Providing Improved U.S. Space Capabilities .................................................................... 6

Partnering with Responsible Nations, International Organizations, and 

Commercial Firms ............................................................................................................. 8

Preventing and Deterring Aggression against Space Infrastructure that Supports U.S. 

National Security ............................................................................................................. 10

Preparing to Defeat Attacks and to Operate in a Degraded Environment ....................... 11

IMPLEMENTATION ............................................................................................................. 12

CONCLUSION – A NEW TYPE OF LEADERSHIP ........................................................... 13

 
 
i

(U) PREFACE 

During the past 50 years, U.S. leadership in space activities has benefited the global 

economy, enhanced our national security, strengthened international relationships, 

advanced scientific discovery, and improved our way of life. 

Space capabilities provide the United States and our allies unprecedented advantages in 

national decision-making, military operations, and homeland security. Space systems 

provide national security decision-makers with unfettered global access and create a 

decision advantage by enabling a rapid and tailored response to global challenges. 

Moreover, space systems are vital to monitoring strategic and military developments as 

well as supporting treaty monitoring and arms control verification. Space systems are 

also critical in our ability to respond to natural and man-made disasters and monitor longterm environmental trends. Space systems allow people and governments around the 

world to see with clarity, communicate with certainty, navigate with accuracy, and 

operate with assurance. 

Maintaining the benefits afforded to the United States by space is central to our national 

security, but an evolving strategic environment increasingly challenges U.S. space 

advantages. Space, a domain that no nation owns but on which all rely, is becoming 

increasingly congested, contested, and competitive. These challenges, however, also 

present the United States with opportunities for leadership and partnership. Just as the 

United States helped promote space security in the 20th century, we will build on this 

foundation to embrace the opportunities and address the challenges of this century. 

The National Security Space Strategy charts a path for the next decade to respond to the 

current and projected space strategic environment. Leveraging emerging opportunities 

will strengthen the U.S. national security space posture while maintaining and enhancing 

the advantages the United States gains from space. 

Our strategy requires active U.S. leadership enabled by an approach that updates, 

balances, and integrates all of the tools of U.S. power. The Department of Defense 

(DoD) and the Intelligence Community (IC), in coordination with other departments and 

agencies, will implement this strategy by using it to inform planning, programming, 

acquisition, operations, and analysis. 

 
ii
NATIONAL SECURITY SPACE STRATEGY UNCLASSIFIED SUMMARY 

1

“The now-ubiquitous and interconnected nature of space capabilities 

and the world’s growing dependence on them mean that irresponsible 

acts in space can have damaging consequences for all of us.” 

- 2010 National Space Policy 

Space is vital to U.S. national security and our ability to understand emerging threats, 

project power globally, conduct operations, support diplomatic efforts, and enable global 

economic viability. As more nations and non-state actors recognize these benefits and 

seek their own space or counterspace capabilities, we are faced with new opportunities 

and new challenges in the space domain. 

The current and future strategic environment is driven by three trends – space is 

becoming increasingly congested, contested, and competitive. 

Space is increasingly congested. Growing global space activity and testing of China’s 

destructive anti-satellite (ASAT) system have increased congestion in important areas in 

space. DoD tracks approximately 22,000 man-made objects in orbit, of which 1,100 are 

active satellites (see Figure 1). There may be as many as hundreds of thousands of 

additional pieces of debris that are too small to track with current sensors. Yet these 

smaller pieces of debris can damage satellites in orbit. 

THE STRATEGIC ENVIRONMENT 

Figure 1. Source: Joint Space Operations Center 

0

5000

10000

15000

20000

25000

19581960196219641966196819701972197419761978198019821984198619881990199219941996

1998200020022004200620082010

N umber of Objects

Total

Debris

Uncataloged*

Payloads

Rocket bodies

2000

Total: 9,600

1980

Total: 4,600

2010 

Total: 22,000

* Uncataloged= unknown object and/or unknown origin

1990

Total: 6,900

1970

Total: 1,800

Iridium-COSMOS Collision

COSMOS 2421 Breakup

Chinese ASAT Test

Shemya Radar to full-power ops

Satellite Catalog Growth 
NATIONAL SECURITY SPACE STRATEGY UNCLASSIFIED SUMMARY 

2

Today’s space environment contrasts with earlier days of the space age in which only a 

handful of nations needed to be concerned with congestion. Now there are approximately 

60 nations and government consortia that own and operate satellites, in addition to 

numerous commercial and academic satellite operators (see Figure 2). This congestion – 

along with the effects of operational use, structural failures, accidents involving space 

systems, and irresponsible testing or employment of debris-producing destructive ASATs 

– is complicating space operations for all those that seek to benefit from space. 

Increased congestion was highlighted by the 2009 collision between a Russian 

government Cosmos satellite and a U.S. commercial Iridium satellite. The collision 

created approximately 1,500 new pieces of trackable space debris, adding to the more 

than 3,000 pieces of debris created by the 2007 Chinese ASAT test. These two events 

greatly increased the cataloged population of orbital debris. 

Another area of increasing congestion is the radiofrequency spectrum. Demand for 

radiofrequency spectrum to support worldwide satellite services is expected to grow 

commensurate with the rapid expansion of satellite services and applications. As many 

as 9,000 satellite communications transponders are expected to be in orbit by 2015. As 

the demand for bandwidth increases and more transponders are placed in service, the 

greater the probability of radiofrequency interference and the strain on international 

processes to minimize that interference. 

 

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Number of Nations and Government Consortia Operating in Space 

Figure 2. Source: National Air and Space Intelligence Center 
NATIONAL SECURITY SPACE STRATEGY UNCLASSIFIED SUMMARY 

3

Space is increasingly contested in all orbits. Today space systems and their supporting 

infrastructure face a range of man-made threats that may deny, degrade, deceive, disrupt, 

or destroy assets. Potential adversaries are seeking to exploit perceived space 

vulnerabilities. As more nations and non-state actors develop counterspace capabilities 

over the next decade, threats to U.S. space systems and challenges to the stability and 

security of the space environment will increase. Irresponsible acts against space systems 

could have implications beyond the space domain, disrupting worldwide services upon 

which the civil and commerical sectors depend. 

Space is increasingly competitive. Although the United States still maintains an overall 

edge in space capabilities, the U.S. competitive advantage has decreased as market-entry 

barriers have lowered (see Figure 3). The U.S. technological lead is eroding in several 

areas as expertise among other nations increases. International advances in space 

technology and the associated increase in foreign availability of components have put 

increased importance on the U.S. export control review process to ensure the 

competitiveness of the U.S. space industrial base while also addressing national 

security needs. 

U.S. suppliers, especially those in the second and third tiers, are at risk due to 

inconsistent acquisition and production rates, long development cycles, consolidation of 

suppliers under first-tier prime contractors, and a more competitive foreign market. A 

decrease in specialized suppliers further challenges U.S. abilities to maintain assured 

access to critical technologies, avoid critical dependencies, inspire innovation, and 

maintain leadership advantages. All of these issues are compounded by challenges in 

recruiting, developing, and retaining a technical workforce. 

Figure 3. Source: Satellite Industry Association. 

$8.3

$10.6

$12.4

$10.4

$11.5

$9.5

$11.0

$9.8

$10.2

$7.8

$12.0

$11.6

$10.5

$13.5

$4.9

$6.9

$7.9

$6.6

$6.0

$3.8

$4.4 $4.6

$3.9

$3.2

$5.0 $4.8

$3.1

$7.7

59%

65% 64% 63%

52%

40%

47%

38%

41% 42% 41%

30%

57%

0%

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

$0

$2

$4

$6

$8

10

12

14

16

1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009

Notes: Revenue figures are in-year estimates, not adjusted for inflation over time. Satellite Manufacturing revenues are recorded in the year the 

satellite is delivered/launched, not when contract is awarded or interim payments are transacted. World revenue includes U.S. revenue.

World Revenue

U.S. Revenue (in Billions of U.S. Dollars)

U.S. Share of World Revenues

U.S. versus World Satellite Manufacturing Revenues, 1996-2009 
NATIONAL SECURITY SPACE STRATEGY UNCLASSIFIED SUMMARY 

4

In executing the National Space Policy, our National Security Space Strategy seeks to 

maintain and enhance the national security benefits we derive from our activities and 

capabilities in space while addressing and shaping the strategic environment and 

strengthening the foundations of our enterprise. The U.S. defense and intelligence 

communities will continue to rely on space systems for military operations, intelligence 

collection, and related activities; access to these capabilities must be assured. We must 

address the growing challenges of the congested, contested, and competitive space 

environment while continuing our leadership in the space domain. 

Our strategy is derived from the principles and goals found in the National Space Policy 

and builds on the strategic approach laid out in the National Security Strategy. 

Specifically, our national security space objectives are to: 

• Strengthen safety, stability, and security in space; 

• Maintain and enhance the strategic national security advantages afforded to the 

United States by space; and 

• Energize the space industrial base that supports U.S. national security. 

We seek a safe space environment in which all can operate with minimal risk of 

accidents, breakups, and purposeful interference. We seek a stable space environment in 

which nations exercise shared responsibility to act as stewards of the space domain and 

follow norms of behavior. We seek a secure space environment in which responsible 

nations have access to space and the benefits of space operations without need to exercise 

their inherent right of self-defense. 

We seek to ensure national security access to space and use of space capabilities in peace, 

crisis, or conflict. We seek to meet the needs of national leaders and intelligence and 

military personnel, irrespective of degradation of the space environment or attacks on 

specific systems or satellites. Enhancing these benefits requires improving the 

foundational activities of our national security space enterprise – including our systems, 

our acquisition processes, our industrial base, our technology innovation, and our 

space professionals. 

A resilient, flexible, and healthy space industrial base must underpin all of our space 

activities. We seek to foster a space industrial base comprised of skilled professionals 

who deliver those innovative technologies and systems that enable our competitive 

advantage. Our space system developers, operators, and analysts must deliver, field, and 

sustain national security space capabilities for the 21st century. 

 

STRATEGIC OBJECTIVES 
NATIONAL SECURITY SPACE STRATEGY UNCLASSIFIED SUMMARY 

5

“To promote security and stability in space, we will pursue activities 

consistent with the inherent right of self-defense, deepen cooperation 

with allies and friends, and work with all nations toward the 

responsible and peaceful use of space.” 

- 2010 National Security Strategy 

The National Security Space Strategy draws upon all elements of national power and 

requires active U.S. leadership in space. The United States will pursue a set of 

interrelated strategic approaches to meet our national security space objectives: 

• Promote responsible, peaceful, and safe use of space; 

• Provide improved U.S. space capabilities; 

• Partner with responsible nations, international organizations, and 

commercial firms; 

• Prevent and deter aggression against space infrastructure that supports U.S. 

national security; and 

• Prepare to defeat attacks and to operate in a degraded environment. 

Promoting Responsible, Peaceful, and Safe Use of Space 

“All nations have the right to use and explore space, but with this 

right also comes responsibility. The United States, therefore, calls 

on all nations to work together to adopt approaches for responsible 

activity in space to preserve this right for the benefit of future 

generations.” 

 - 2010 National Space Policy 

As directed in the National Space Policy, the United States will promote the responsible, 

peaceful, and safe use of space as the foundational step to addressing the congested and 

contested space domain and enabling other aspects of our approach. We will encourage 

allies, partners, and others to do the same. As more nations, international organizations, 

and commercial firms field or aspire to field space capabilities, it is increasingly 

important that they act responsibly, peacefully, and safely in space. At the same time, 

they must be reassured of U.S. intentions to act likewise. We will encourage responsible 

behavior in space and lead by the power of our example. Moreover, U.S. diplomatic 

engagements will enhance our ability to cooperate with our allies and partners and seek 

common ground among all space-faring nations. 

The United States will support development of data standards, best practices, 

transparency and confidence-building measures, and norms of behavior for responsible 

space operations. We will consider proposals and concepts for arms control measures if 

STRATEGIC APPROACHES 
NATIONAL SECURITY SPACE STRATEGY UNCLASSIFIED SUMMARY 

6

they are equitable, effectively verifiable, and enhance the national security of the United 

States and its allies. We believe setting pragmatic guidelines for safe activity in space 

can help avoid collisions and other debris-producing events, reduce radiofrequency 

interference, and promote security and stability in the space domain – all of which are in 

the interests of all nations. 

Shared awareness of spaceflight activity must improve in order to foster global 

spaceflight safety and help prevent mishaps, misperceptions, and mistrust. The United 

States is the leader in space situational awareness (SSA) and can use its knowledge to 

foster cooperative SSA relationships, support safe space operations, and protect U.S. and 

allied space capabilities and operations. 

DoD will continue to improve the quantity and quality of the SSA information it obtains 

and expand provision of safety of flight services to U.S. Government agencies, other 

nations, and commercial firms. DoD will encourage other space operators to share their 

spaceflight safety data. DoD, in coordination with other government agencies, will seek 

to establish agreements with other nations and commercial firms to maintain and improve 

space object databases, pursue common international data standards and data integrity 

measures, and provide services and disseminate orbital tracking information, including 

predictions of space object conjunction, to enhance spaceflight safety for all parties. 

Providing Improved U.S. Space Capabilities 

“Being able to deliver capability cost-effectively when it is needed 

improves mission effectiveness, provides leadership with flexibility in 

making investments, and precludes gaps in necessary capabilities.” 

- 2009 National Intelligence Strategy 

U.S. space capabilities will continue to be fundamental for national security. DoD and 

the IC will identify, improve, and prioritize investments in those capabilities that garner 

the greatest advantages. We will develop, acquire, field, operate, and sustain space 

capabilities to deliver timely and accurate space services to a variety of customers, from 

soldiers to national decision-makers. We will enhance interoperability and compatibility 

of existing national security systems, across operational domains and mission areas, to 

maximize efficiency of our national security architecture; we will ensure these 

characteristics are built into future systems. We will ensure that data collection and 

products are released at the lowest possible classification to maximize their usefulness to 

the user community. 

Ensuring U.S. capabilities are developed and fielded in a timely, reliable, and responsive 

manner is critical for national decision-makers to act on time-sensitive and accurate 

information, for military forces to plan and execute effective operations, and for the IC to 

enable all of the above with timely indications and warning. Improving our acquisition 

processes, energizing the U.S. space industrial base, enhancing technological innovation, 

and deliberately developing space professionals are critical enablers to maintaining U.S. 

space leadership. 

In cooperation with our industrial base partners, DoD and the IC will revalidate current 

measures and implement new measures, where practicable, to stabilize program 

acquisition more effectively and improve our space acquisition processes. We will 
NATIONAL SECURITY SPACE STRATEGY UNCLASSIFIED SUMMARY 

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reduce programmatic risk through improved management of requirements. We will use 

proven best practices of systems engineering, mission assurance, contracting, technology 

maturation, cost estimating, and financial management to improve system acquisition, 

reduce the risk of mission failure, and increase successful launch and operation of our 

space systems. 

Mission permitting, we will synchronize the planning, programming, and execution of 

major acquisition programs with other DoD and IC processes to improve efficiencies and 

overall performance of our acquisition system and industrial base. DoD and the IC will 

evaluate the requirements and analysis of alternatives processes to ensure a range of 

affordable solutions is considered and to identify requirements for possible adjustment. 

The requirements process must produce combinations of material and non-material 

solutions. Realistic cost and schedule estimates must inform the President’s annual 

budget request. Human resources processes must provide the right personnel for 

successful execution. 

We seek to foster a U.S. space industrial base that is robust, competitive, flexible, 

healthy, and delivers reliable space capabilities on time and on budget. DoD and the IC, 

in concert with the civil space sector, will better manage investments across portfolios to 

ensure the industrial base can sustain those critical technologies and skills that produce 

the systems we require. Additionally, we will continue to explore a mix of capabilities 

with shorter development cycles to minimize delays, cut cost growth, and enable more 

rapid technology maturation, innovation, and exploitation. 

A key aspect of energizing the U.S. space industrial base is to reform U.S. export controls 

to address technology security and global competitiveness. Export controls have a farreaching impact on national security interests, as they help deter illicit efforts by others to 

obtain and use the materials, technology, and know-how that are vital to our national 

security. Export controls, however, can also affect the health and welfare of the 

industrial base, in particular second-tier and third-tier suppliers. Reforming export 

controls will facilitate U.S. firms’ ability to compete to become providers-of-choice in the 

international marketplace for capabilities that are, or will soon become, widely available 

globally, while strengthening our ability to protect the most significant U.S. technology 

advantages. In particular, as new opportunities arise for international collaboration, a 

revised export control system will better enable the domestic firms competing for these 

contracts. Revised export control policies will address U.S. firms’ ability to export 

space-related items generally available in the global marketplace, consistent with U.S. 

policy and international commitments. 

We will continue to pursue, adapt, and evolve the unique technologies, innovative 

exploitation techniques, and diverse applications that give the United States its strategic 

advantage in space. The United States seeks to maintain and enhance access to those 

global and domestic technologies needed for national security space systems. We will do 

so by expanding technology partnerships with the academic community, industry, U.S. 

and partner governments, mission customers, and other centers of technical excellence 

and innovation, consistent with U.S. policy, technology transfer objectives, and 

international commitments. To advance the science and technology that enables U.S. 

space capabilities, we will continue to assess global technology trends to find emerging 

technologies and potential breakthroughs. We will explore new applications of current 
NATIONAL SECURITY SPACE STRATEGY UNCLASSIFIED SUMMARY 

8

technologies and the development of unique, innovative technologies and capabilities. 

We will improve the transition of scientific research and technology development to the 

operational user and into major system acquisition. To the extent practicable, we will 

also facilitate the incorporation of these capabilities and technologies into appropriate 

domestic space programs. 

People are our greatest asset. To support the range of national security space activities, 

we will develop current and future national security space professionals – our “space 

cadre” – who can acquire capabilities, operate systems, analyze information, and succeed 

in a congested, contested, and competitive environment. We will build a more diverse 

and balanced workforce among military, civilian, and contractor components. These 

professionals must be educated, experienced, and trained in the best practices of their 

field – whether it is planning, programming, acquisition, manufacturing, operations, or 

analysis. 

We will continue to encourage students at all levels to pursue technical coursework as a 

foundation for space-related career fields. Working with other departments and agencies, 

we will synchronize our science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) 

education initiatives with sound education investments to ensure an ample supply of 

space professionals with appropriate skills and capabilities. We will encourage our space 

professionals to participate in STEM outreach and mentoring programs. 

We will continue to develop structured personnel development programs to expand, 

track, and sustain our space expertise, employing focused education and training as well 

as purposeful utilization of our people to offer a broad range of experiential opportunities. 

We will further professional development by growing, rewarding, and retaining scientific 

and technical expertise and professional leadership. We will support an entrepreneurial 

ethos by encouraging initiative, innovation, collaboration, resourcefulness, and resilience. 

As national security space priorities shift, we will continue to educate and train the 

workforce to align with new priorities. 

Partnering with Responsible Nations, International Organizations, and 

Commercial Firms 

“[E]xplore opportunities to leverage growing international and 

commercial expertise to enhance U.S. capabilities and reduce the 

vulnerability of space systems and their supporting ground 

infrastructure.” 

- 2010 Quadrennial Defense Review 

The evolving strategic environment allows for additional opportunities to partner with 

responsible nations, international organizations, and commercial firms. DoD and the IC 

will continue to partner with others to augment the U.S. national security space posture 

across many mission areas. This includes looking for opportunities to leverage or work 

in conjunction with partnerships pursued by U.S. Government civil space agencies. By 

sharing or exchanging capabilities, data, services, personnel, operations, and technology, 

we can ensure access to information and services from a more diverse set of systems – an 

advantage in a contested space environment. We will promote appropriate cost-sharing 

and risk-sharing partnerships to develop and share capabilities. Decisions on partnering 
NATIONAL SECURITY SPACE STRATEGY UNCLASSIFIED SUMMARY 

9

will be consistent with U.S. policy and international commitments and consider cost, 

protection of sources and methods, and effects on the U.S. industrial base. 

Partnering with other nations also is essential to ensuring global access to the 

radiofrequency spectrum and related orbital assignments and promoting the responsible, 

peaceful, and safe use of outer space. Nations gain international acceptance of their use 

of the radiofrequency spectrum and satellite orbits through the International 

Telecommunication Union (ITU). Registering satellite networks with the ITU can help 

prevent and, if necessary, address radiofrequency interference. 

The United States will lead in building coalitions of like-minded space-faring nations 

and, where appropriate, work with international institutions to do so. With our allies, we 

will explore the development of combined space doctrine with principles, goals, and 

objectives that, in particular, endorse and enable the collaborative sharing of space 

capabilities in crisis and conflict. We will seek to expand mutually beneficial agreements 

with key partners to utilize existing and planned capabilities that can augment U.S. 

national security space capabilities. We will pursue increased interoperability, 

compatibility, and integration of partner nations into appropriate DoD and IC networks to 

support information sharing and collective endeavors, taking affordability and mutual 

benefit into account. At the same time, U.S. military and intelligence personnel will 

ensure the appropriate review and release of classified information to enhance partner 

access to space information. 

We will actively promote the sale of U.S.-developed capabilities to partner nations and 

the integration of those capabilities into existing U.S. architectures and networks. 

Posturing our domestic industry to develop these systems will also enable the 

competitiveness of the U.S. industrial base. 

We will explore sharing space-derived information as “global utilities” with partnered 

nations. As we do today with the positioning, navigation, and timing services of the 

Global Positioning System, we will provide services derived from selected space systems 

and enhance those services through partnerships. We will continue to share SSA 

information to promote responsible and safe space operations. We will also pursue 

enhanced sharing of other space services such as missile warning and maritime domain 

awareness. We may seek to establish a collaborative missile warning network to detect 

attacks against our interests and those of our allies and partners. 

Strategic partnerships with commercial firms will continue to enable access to a more 

diverse, robust, and distributed set of space systems and provide easily releasable data. 

Strategic partnerships with commercial firms will be pursued in areas that both stabilize 

costs and improve the resilience of space architectures upon which we rely. Innovative 

approaches will be explored for their utility in meeting government performance 

requirements in a cost-effective and timely manner. We will rely on proven commercial 

capabilities to the maximum extent practicable, and we will modify commercial 

capabilities to meet government requirements when doing so is more cost-effective and 

timely for the government. We will develop space systems only when there is no 

suitable, cost-effective commercial alternative or when national security needs dictate. 
NATIONAL SECURITY SPACE STRATEGY UNCLASSIFIED SUMMARY 

10

Preventing and Deterring Aggression against Space Infrastructure that 

Supports U.S. National Security 

“U.S. forces must be able to deter, defend against, and defeat 

aggression by potentially hostile nation-states. This capability is 

fundamental to the nation’s ability to protect its interests and to 

provide security in key regions.” 

- 2010 Quadrennial Defense Review 

Given the degree to which the United States relies on space systems and supporting 

infrastructure for national security, we must use a multilayered approach to prevent and 

deter aggression. We seek to enhance our national capability to dissuade and deter the 

development, testing, and employment of counterspace systems and prevent and deter 

aggression against space systems and supporting infrastructure that support U.S. 

national security. 

Many elements of this strategy contribute to this approach. We will: support diplomatic 

efforts to promote norms of responsible behavior in space; pursue international 

partnerships that encourge potential adversary restraint; improve our ability to attribute 

attacks; strengthen the resilience of our architectures to deny the benefits of an attack; 

and retain the right to respond, should deterrence fail. 

DoD and the IC will support the diplomatic and public diplomacy efforts of the 

Department of State to promote the responsible use of space and discourage activities that 

threaten the safety, stability, and security of the space domain. We will also work with 

the Department of State and other appropriate U.S. Government agencies to strengthen 

alliances with other space-faring nations and pursue partnerships with commercial firms 

and international organizations. 

We will improve our intelligence posture – predictive awareness, characterization, 

warning, and attribution – to better monitor and attribute activities in the space domain. 

Thus, SSA and foundational intelligence will continue to be top priorities, as they 

underpin our ability to maintain awareness of natural disturbances and the capabilities, 

activities, and intentions of others. We will also enable and develop intelligence 

professionals who can provide greater scope, depth, and quality of intelligence collection 

and analysis. 

We will seek to deny adversaries meaningful benefits of attack by improving costeffective protection and strengthening the resilience of our architectures. Partnerships 

with other nations, commercial firms, and international organizations, as well as 

alternative U.S. Government approaches such as cross-domain solutions, hosted 

payloads, responsive options, and other innovative solutions, can deliver capability, 

should our space systems be attacked. This also will enable our ability to operate in a 

degraded space environment. 

Finally, the United States will retain the right and capabilities to respond in self-defense, 

should deterrence fail. We will use force in a manner that is consistent with longstanding 

principles of international law, treaties to which the United States is a party, and the 

inherent right of self defense.
NATIONAL SECURITY SPACE STRATEGY UNCLASSIFIED SUMMARY 

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Preparing to Defeat Attacks and Operate in a Degraded Environment 

“Increase assurance and resilience of mission-essential functions 

enabled by commercial, civil, scientific, and national security 

spacecraft and supporting infrastructure against disruption, 

degradation, and destruction, whether from environmental, 

mechanical, electronic, or hostile causes.” 

- 2010 National Space Policy 

We believe it is in the interests of all space-faring nations to avoid hostilities in space. 

In spite of this, some actors may still believe counterspace actions could provide 

military advantage. Our military and intelligence capabilities must be prepared to “fight 

through” a degraded environment and defeat attacks targeted at our space systems 

and supporting infrastructure. We must deny and defeat an adversary’s ability to achieve 

its objectives. 

As we invest in next generation space capabilities and fill gaps in current capabilities, we 

will include resilience as a key criterion in evaluating alternative architectures. 

Resilience can be achieved in a variety of ways, to include cost-effective space system 

protection, cross-domain solutions, hosting payloads on a mix of platforms in various 

orbits, drawing on distributed international and commercial partner capabilities, and 

developing and maturing responsive space capabilities. We will develop the most 

feasible, mission-effective, and fiscally sound mix of these alternatives. 

To make the most effective use of space protection resources, we will identify and 

prioritize protection for vital space missions supporting national security requirements. 

We will implement cost-effective protection commensurate with threat, system use, and 

impact of loss – applied to each segment of our space systems and supporting 

infrastructure. 

To enhance resilience, we will continue to develop mission-effective alternatives, 

including land, sea, air, space, and cyber-based alternatives for critical capabilities 

currently delivered primarily through space-based platforms. In addition, we will 

seek to establish relationships and agreements whereby we can access partner 

capabilities if U.S. systems are degraded or unavailable. We will be prepared to 

use these capabilities to ensure the timely continuity of services in a degraded 

space environment. 

Preparing for attacks must extend to the people and processes relying on space 

information, operating our space systems, and analyzing space-derived information. We 

will improve the ability of U.S. military and intelligence agencies to operate in a denied 

or degraded space environment through focused education, training, and exercises and 

through new doctrine and tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs). 

 
NATIONAL SECURITY SPACE STRATEGY UNCLASSIFIED SUMMARY 

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Consistent with the guidance provided by the President in the National Space Policy, 

DoD and the IC will implement the National Security Space Strategy by using it to 

inform future planning, programming, acquisition, operations, and analysis guidance. 

DoD and the IC will work with other U.S. Government agencies and departments, as well 

as foreign governments and commercial partners, to update, balance, and integrate all of 

the tools of U.S. power. We will evolve policies, strategies, and doctrine pertaining to 

national security space. 

Implementation plans will be developed based on feasibility and affordability 

assessments and cost, benefit, and risk analyses. Further, the impact of plans on 

manning, operations, and programs will be understood prior to implementation. As 

stated in the National Security Strategy, our ability to achieve long-term goals for space 

depends upon our fiscal responsibility and making tough choices, such as between 

capability and survivability. 

 

IMPLEMENTATION 
NATIONAL SECURITY SPACE STRATEGY UNCLASSIFIED SUMMARY 

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“Our national security strategy is, therefore, focused on renewing 

American leadership so that we can more effectively advance our 

interests in the 21st century. We will do so by building on the sources 

of our strength at home, while shaping an international order that can 

meet the challenges of our time.” 

- 2010 National Security Strategy 

The United States will retain leadership in space by strengthening our posture at home 

and collaborating with others worldwide. Just as U.S. national security is built upon 

maintaining strategic advantages, it is also increasingly predicated on active U.S. 

leadership of alliance and coalition efforts in peacetime, crisis, and conflict. 

Active U.S. leadership in space requires a whole-of-government approach that integrates 

all elements of national power, from technological prowess and industrial capacity to 

alliance building and diplomatic engagement. Leadership cannot be predicated on 

declaratory policy alone. It must build upon a willingness to maintain strategic 

advantages while working with the international community to develop collective norms, 

share information, and collaborate on capabilities. 

U.S. leadership in space can help the United States and our partners address the 

challenges posed by a space domain that is increasingly congested, contested, and 

competitive. Our strategy seeks to address this new environment through its set of 

interrelated approaches: 

• We seek to address congestion by establishing norms, enhancing space situational 

awareness, and fostering greater transparency and information sharing. Our 

words and deeds should reassure our allies and the world at large of our intent to 

act peacefully and responsibly in space and encourage others to do 

the same. 

• We seek to address the contested environment with a multilayered deterrence 

approach. We will support establishing international norms and transparency and 

confidence-building measures in space, primarily to promote spaceflight safety 

but also to dissuade and impose international costs on aggressive behavior. We 

will improve and protect vital U.S. space capabilities while using interoperability, 

compatibility, and integration to create coalitions and alliances of responsible 

space-faring nations. We will improve our capability to attribute attacks and seek 

to deny meaningful operational benefits from such attacks. We will retain the 

right and capabilities to respond in self-defense, should deterrence fail. 

• We seek to address competition by enhancing our own capabilities, improving our 

acquisition processes, fostering a healthy U.S. industrial base, and strengthening 

collaboration and cooperation. 

CONCLUSION – A NEW TYPE OF LEADERSHIP 
NATIONAL SECURITY SPACE STRATEGY UNCLASSIFIED SUMMARY 

14

Our objectives are to improve safety, stability, and security in space; to maintain and 

enhance the strategic national security advantages afforded to the United States by space; 

and to energize the space industrial base that supports U.S. national security. Achieving 

these objectives will mean not only that our military and intelligence communities can 

continue to use space for national security purposes, but that a community of nations is 

working toward creating a sustainable and peaceful space environment to benefit the 

world for years to come.