NATO Allies Recognize Space As Operational Domain - Stoltenberg

BRUSSELS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 21st November, 2019) The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) has identified space as an operational domain, alongside air, land, sea and cyber area, the alliance's Secretary General, Jens Stoltenberg, said.

"We have agreed that space should be a new operational domain for NATO alongside air, land, sea and cyber. Space is part of our daily life here on Earth. It can be used for peaceful purposes. But it can be also used aggressively," Stoltenberg told a press conference on the results of the NATO foreign ministers' meeting in Brussels on Wednesday.

The alliance's chief continued by explaining that satellites could be jammed, hacked or weaponized, which could lead to disrupted communications and affect various services and areas.

Moreover, space was essential to NATO's defense and deterrence, such as the alliance's ability to detect missile launches and gather intelligence, Stoltenberg argued.

Stoltenberg emphasized that NATO remained a defensive alliance and did not intend to put weapons in space, acting in line with international law.

"Making space an operational domain will help us ensure that all aspects are taken into account to ensure the success of our missions," the NATO chief noted.

While air, land and sea have been traditional operational domains for NATO, the cyberspace was recognized as such an area of the alliance's defensive activities in July 2016.