Resumo

ROSAS GONZALEZ, María Cristina. The Silk Road in Space? China, Strategic Restraint and Space Security. Rev. mex. cienc. polít. soc [online]. 2025, vol.70, n.253, pp.129-159.  Epub 26-Maio-2025. ISSN 0185-1918.  https://doi.org/10.22201/fcpys.2448492xe.2025.253.81553.

This article analyzes the entry of the People’s Republic of China into the space race and the short time it has required to become a space power compared to the Soviet Union and the United States. Unlike Washington and Moscow, however, China’s space developments have proceeded without the strategic restraint required to mitigate their impact. As a result, its activities are highly polluting, generating space debris, threatening space and international security by testing directed-energy weapons, and expanding its influence within the space agendas of several developing countries. Throughout the space race, the United States and the Soviet Union/Russia have agreed to certain rules limiting militarization and promoting the sustainability of space activities. While current geopolitical tensions between Washington and Moscow hinder effective governance of outer space, the People’s Republic of China has a disruptive effect on space security by prioritizing its national interests without fully considering the regulatory framework of space law.

Palavras-chave : space security; People’s Republic of China; Russia; United States; strategic moderation; Chinese space program.

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