Description
The development of theory is a fundamental requirement to explain events that occur in the real world. The growing importance of space to countries is a phenomenon that has been more or less missed by the discipline of international relations, relegating space to the fringe as a variable or clubbing it into the domain of science and technology. Whereas the reality is 72 nations now have space programs, identity space as critical to the development of their societies and Great and Major Powers like the U.S.., China, India and Russia are including space into their grand strategic vision. Drawing from multiple perspectives (U.S., China, India, Russia), and supported by field work in the U.S., China and India, this paper will offer a nuanced assessment of the understanding of power and the underlying notion of legitimacy and norms that could inform the formation of spacepower theory (can we have a generalized consensus on these terms) drawn from sources like Han Feizi, Kautilya and Gandhi, and supported by ideas developed by Hans Morgenthau, Martin Wight and Martin Saar. The paper is inspired by the research question: is there a spacepower theory that is generalizable across time and space and if so what about the unique strategic cultures of China, India and Russia that may deviate from that norm or do they?
