Declaring Commercial Space Off-Limits in War a Challenge: Aerospace

Commercial space operations could try to establish that it's unacceptable for nations to target civilian commercial satellites and systems, even during wars, but one hangup could be that it's not clear how International Humanitarian Law (IHL) applies in space, said Aerospace Corp.’s Center for Space Policy and Strategy in a paper Tuesday. Penned by Robin Dickey, space policy and strategy analyst, the paper said central to IHL and the Law of Armed Conflict is the idea of protecting civilians and their property. It said open questions include whether temporary interference that doesn't cause physical damage is an attack and whether commercial satellites from companies that sell services to militaries are viable military targets. Aerospace said commercial actors establishing standards and practices to protect themselves from things like cyberattacks and electromagnetic interference could also lead to international norms covering even wartime.