Germany vows to protect its interests in growing global space race

BERLIN (Reuters) -Germany will expand its security infrastructure in space to better protect its interests in a sphere where countries are already competing for dominance, said the foreign and defence ministers in a joint statement published on Wednesday.

The two ministries presented their new space security strategy to the cabinet on Wednesday, in which they commit to a peaceful, rules-based use of space while also pledging to build a space infrastructure strong enough to serve as a deterrent.

Germany's defence ministry alone plans to invest 35 billion euros ($40 billion) in space over the next few years, and the German military will form the backbone of the space strategy, said Defence Minister Boris Pistorius in the statement.

The strategy sets the framework for how Germany can better protect itself, said Pistorius, for example against the GPS signal disruptions by Russia in the Baltic Sea region.

"Space has long been an arena for military conflicts and economic competition, as demonstrated most recently by Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine," said Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul in the same statement.

"The race for dominance in space is in full swing. It is therefore all the more important that Germany protects its interests," he added.

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(Reporting by Miranda Murray; editing by Matthias Williams)