IEEE STRATEGY NOTEBOOK ON GEOPOLITICS OF SPACE

On September 1, 2026, the Publications Department of the Spanish Ministry of Defense published the Strategy Notebook entitled Geopolitics of Space, which I had the honour of coordinating for a year. This monograph presents the findings of a working group chaired by Pedro Duque, president of Hispasat, which brought together Spanish civilian and military experts from academia, the space industry, and the Spanish Armed Forces to address a series of questions regarding the use of space and its impact on recent conflicts. The working group was established within the Spanish Institute for Strategic Studies (IEEE) at CESEDEN in Madrid. Unlike previous publications, this strategy notebook, published in both Spanish and English -see CUADERNO DE ESTRATEGIA DEL IEEE GEOPOLÍTICA DEL ESPACIO, April 2026-, focuses on space as an arena of combat within a complex and unstable international system in transition, where conflicts involving major powers, directly or indirectly, are expanding. From a multidisciplinary perspective, each author has studied a part of this reality, ranging from the economic value of space for developed societies to the military space programs of major powers. This also includes NATO and its partners, Europe's role in the global space race, and Spain's current and future space capabilities in different medium-term development scenarios. Each author contributes relevant conclusions in their field, but these are necessarily open and will require review in the medium term. This is the only way for knowledge to advance, because changes are occurring at breakneck speed. The strategy booklet contains a general bibliography intended to provide in-depth information for other specialists and students, and also to support future research in the study of outer space. It is a text for our times, which requires reading and reflection because it offers us a glimpse into the future. The structure of the Geopolitics of Space is as follows: 

• Introduction, Dr. Luis V. Pérez Gil.  
• Chapter one: Utilization of space, technological barriers and economic value for developed societies, Pedro Duque, President of Hispasat.  
• Chapter Two: Current and Potential European Space Programs, by Ana Molina, CEO of Hispasat. 
• Chapter Three: Military Operations in Space: NATO, the United States, and other partners and allies outside of Europe, by José María Cifuentes Rivera, NATO Space Centre of Excellence.  
• Chapter Four: Strategic Competence and the control of Space, by Dr. José M. Martínez Cortés, Francisco de Vitoria University. 
• Chapter Five: Europe's strategic autonomy in space: conceptually in orbit, but constrained political gravity, by Dr. Juan Manuel Chomón Pérez, European Union Staff.  
• Chapter Six: The space domain within National Aerospace Security Strategy, by Juan Carlos Sánchez Delgado, Spanish Air Force, and Juan Antonio de la Torre Valentín, Department of National Security.  
• Chapter Seven: The capabilities and potential of the national space industry to make decisive contributions to European defence in the space domain, by Cecilia Hernández Rodríguez, Spanish Space Agency.

Bibliographic reference: Geopolitics of Space (Pérez Gil, L. coord.). Strategy Notebook 235-B. Spanish Institute for Strategic Studies. Madrid: Ministry of Defense, September 2026. Available at: https://publicaciones.defensa.gob.es/geopolitics-of-space-ce-235b-libros-pdf.html (free download). 

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