The New Zealand and United States militaries have signed a “statement of intent” over space operations.
The NZ Defence Force (NZDF) has few space property of its personal – though its functionality plan envisages including floor stations or a satellite tv for pc – and depends closely on the US.
Chief of the NZ Air Force Darryn Webb signed the brand new assertion, together with United States Space Force head General Chance Saltzman.
The US Space Force says the signing bolstered the 2 facet’s cooperation, which was “critical to maintaining a decisive advantage in the current threat environment”.
The NZDF stated it coated future collaboration to advance the 2 nations’ shared safety pursuits in space.
Saltzman visited New Zealand final month after a Joint Heads of Pacific Security assembly in Brisbane.
Briefing notes for his go to – launched to AUT legislation lecturer Dr Marco de Jong – stated New Zealand had been capable of reveal {that a} “small capability in relative terms, can contribute disproportionately to collective space activities”.
New Zealand took up a US invite to affix the elite space safety physique Operation Olympic Defender a number of years in the past.
The physique held talks at a Space Force symposium in Colorado in April, which seemed on the tempo of know-how growth together with the deployment of “a range of counterspace weapons”, in keeping with the notes.
Counterspace weapons embrace lasers, electromagnetic jammers and satellites that may interact in “dog-fighting”.
After it joined Olympic Defender, the NZDF resurrected its 62 Squadron to run space operations, and the unit performed a “critical role” in an train known as Operation Solene lately.
“New Zealand often receives strong signals of interest from other partners, including from Germany this year, in New Zealand hosting ground infrastructure for space domain awareness,” stated the notes for Saltzman’s go to.