Lessons for Europe and Italy from Other Space Powers

The study examines how five space powers – China, Russia, the United States, India and Japan – structure the civil-military interconnection in space, focusing on governance models, strategic priorities, the role of private actors and implications for security and technological competitiveness. The case studies show different patterns: China and Russia rely on more centralised and security-driven approaches, while the United States, India and Japan combine civilian, military and commercial dimensions in different ways. For Europe and Italy, the report highlights the need for stronger strategic coherence, better institutional coordination, stable investment and closer integration between research, innovation and security. The main challenge is not to replicate other space powers’ models, but to build a less fragmented European architecture able to support strategic autonomy and balanced international partnerships.