War’s start expected in space

Press, 31 October 1984, Page 49

War’s start expected in space

NZPA-Reuter Stockholm The military use of space is so far advanced that if the United States and the Soviet Union go to war after 1990, the conflict will probably start in space, according to a new book published by a Stockholm institute. It says military commanders are becoming so dependent on space systems for communications and intelligence that even accidental damage to thensatellites could start a world war. The book, called “Countdown to Space War,” is published by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, which is financed by the Swedish Government and highly re-

garded by defence analysts in Western Europe. The book says the antisatellite, anti-missile defence systems advocated by President Reagan should be limited as they could also be used for offensive purposes. Mr Reagan has called for research into high-energy beam weapons and space systems which could destroy nuclear missiles soon after takeoff and render them impotent and obsolete. The authors, Bhupendra Jasani and Christopher Lee, say such weapons are still in their infancy but that space has already been militarised to an alarming extent. Talks between the United States and the Soviet Union

on preventing an arms race in space failed to take place in Vienna last month after the Americans declined to accept Soviet demands to freeze all space weapons tests during the sessions. “Talk about the dangers of extending the arms race to space is a bit of a myth,” Mr Jasani, a space expert at the Stockholm institute, told reporters. “The extension to space began ' in 1959.” The Soviet Union was first into space when it launched the Sputnik 1 satellite in October, 1957. The United States made its debut the next January. In February, 1959, with the space race less than 18 months old, the United

States launched its first military satellite for photographic October of that year it tested its first anti-satellite missile. Of the several thousand satellites launched by both super-Powers since then, 75 per cent have some direct military use, according to Messrs Jasani and Lee. Both East and West are devoting considerable resources to research on space-based military systems. Figures from the Stockholm institute say that from 1968 to 1983, the Soviet Union made at least 20 tests of a system to intercept and destroy satellites. The Pentagon has earmarked $5.5 billion, nearly a

quarter of its 1985-1989 strategic defence budget, for research on high-energy beam weapons which could destroy enemy missiles soon after takeoff, the book says. Such a system, although defensive in intention, could raise a host of problems, the new book says. Anti-missile defence weapons could be used offensively to attack enemy satellites. They could cause an enemy to deploy more missiles to ensure that enough got through. They raise the risk that a country whose satellites suffered accidental damage would believe it was being attacked and could lead it to launch a missile strike, the authors say.