400 Journal of the Spanish Institute for Strategic Studies Núm. 12 / 2018 serious risks that the deterioration of the space environment posed to the installation of passive military satellites and space exploration in general.7 After all, the great dilemma or the crucial aspect of space governance is that it continues to be regulated under agreements based on strategic stability dating from the Cold War era. The fact that these have not been updated means that new develo-pments since the turn of the century could have negative repercussions both on space stability and security and on the space environment, since these were not addressed at the time. Ultimately, this is the issue that the present article aims at turning the spot-light on: discovering the impact of these new dynamics on the space environment and the various ways in which this can be addressed. THE NEW GEOPOLITICAL SPACE MAP The end of American and Russian hegemony with the influx of new actors in space has led to the consolidation of the so-called “democratisation of space” insofar as it has made it possible to balance the distribution of power in the international arena. Most of these new actors are located on the continent of Asia.8 Specialised literature tends to coincide on the reasons why states want to have their own space capabilities. These are usually: international prestige and status, direct and indirect economic benefits and military capabilities.9 Enumerating the factors that have favoured the influx of Asian countries, Ajey Lele includes the robust economic growth experienced by these states in recent decades and the strategic power of a large group of these countries. Economic prosperity has been translated by governments into investment in space programmes in order to address solutions in relation to civil administration, human and national security, food security, weather forecasting, the management and monitoring of the environment and natural resources, as well as ur-ban management arising from population growth or border control.10 Another major factor has been the “search for legitimacy” on the part of non-democratic regimes.11 7 Moltz, J. C., The Politics of Space Security. Strategic Restraint and the Pursuit of National Interests, California: Stanford University Press, Second edition, 2011, pp. 83-84. 8 Harding, R. C., Space Policy in Developing Countries: The Search for Security and Development on the Final Frontier, New York: Routledge, 2013, pp. 2-3. 9 Cheng, D., “Setting Future Directions in Space”, in William B. Ruger Chair of National Security Economics Papers, Defense Strategy and Forces: Setting Future Directions, vol. 3, Naval War College: Newport, 2007, pp. 224-226; Harding, R. C., op. cit., note 8, p. 4; Moltz, J. C., Asia’s Space Race: National Motivations, Regional Rivalries, and International Risks, New York: Columbia University Press, 2012, p. 50. 10 Lele, A., Asian Space Race: Rhetoric Or Reality? New Delhi: Springer, 2013, pp. 3; 19. 11 Harding, R. C., op. cit., note 8, p. 100. Revista del Instituto Español de Estudios Estratégicos n.º 12 - Año: 2018 - Págs.: 397 a 431
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