The Geopolitics of Outer Space: How going back to the Moon is reshaping international politics

In the past few years, all major space powers have revamped their interests in the conquest of the Moon as a key geopolitical asset. In May 2020, the United States was the first space-faring state to officialise a set of bilateral agreements, the Artemis Accords, aimed a legally and politically support the extraction, utilisation and commercialisation of lunar resources, as well as the permanent settlement of a lunar outpost. The American space agenda marked the opening of interesting times for the politics of space exploration, as all major space powers have either embraced or criticised the American approach. As such, this thesis attempts to fill the gap in the literature on the geopolitical implications of space exploration. In order to do so, a descriptive process-tracing of the single case study of the Artemis Accords is carried out, while investigating its geopolitical link with the international space agenda of four major space powers: the US, China, Russia and Europe. While...Show moreIn the past few years, all major space powers have revamped their interests in the conquest of the Moon as a key geopolitical asset. In May 2020, the United States was the first space-faring state to officialise a set of bilateral agreements, the Artemis Accords, aimed a legally and politically support the extraction, utilisation and commercialisation of lunar resources, as well as the permanent settlement of a lunar outpost. The American space agenda marked the opening of interesting times for the politics of space exploration, as all major space powers have either embraced or criticised the American approach. As such, this thesis attempts to fill the gap in the literature on the geopolitical implications of space exploration. In order to do so, a descriptive process-tracing of the single case study of the Artemis Accords is carried out, while investigating its geopolitical link with the international space agenda of four major space powers: the US, China, Russia and Europe. While relying on both primary and secondary data, the analysis allows to conclude the inherent geopolitical value of states’ practice in outer space, as well as the underlying political, economic and diplomatic factors that are at the heart of international politics. Outer space is increasingly bounded by geopolitical value, to a level seeing only during the 1960s space race, and while the future of international politics is yet to be determined, one thing is certain: it will pass by the Moon.Show less

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The Geopolitics of Outer Space: How going back to the Moon is reshaping international politics