Space in a Changing Environment: a European Point of View Notes de l'Ifri, March 2015
The development of European space activities has long been pursued under the framework of the European Space Agency and other national space agencies. More recently, the emergence of the European Union as a new actor for space has paved the way for a series of initiatives and opportunities.
However, the European space policy still does not promote a consistent and successful European space strategy. A first difficulty is to decide how to balance diversity and unity amongst European space-faring nations. Additionally, Europe must define reasons, goals, and above all values for its space program.
In order to outline possible future solutions, this paper reviews a series of significant case studies. It looks first at the motivation of different European actors: from the French model of autonomy to the British market-based model and the German cooperative model. It then considers different cooperation mechanisms: the ESA type, the EU type and the international program type.