Beyza Unal

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The SpaceX Dragon in an image taken from the International Space Station. Photo by Tim Peake/ESA/NASA via Getty Images.

Mega-constellations are composed of several hundreds of highly networked satellites in low Earth orbit, and they are fundamental in providing uninterrupted communication through networks across the globe, enabling internet access even in remote areas.

The space industry has shown great interest in mega-constellations due to their expected high return on capital invested. SpaceX, via its Starlink satellite internet constellations, has already launched 60 satellites into low-earth orbit (LEO) in May 2021. It plans to launch thousands more in the coming years as part of its mega-constellation project. OneWeb, Amazon, and several other private space companies have similar ambitions.

Unregulated launches of mega-constellations, however, make low Earth orbit too crowded to function safely and securely.…  Seguir leyendo »

HMS Astute nuclear submarine, equipped with cruise missiles and torpedoes, has more firepower than any previous British attack submarine. Photo by BAE Systems via Getty Images.

Technology and cyber threats

Dr Beyza Unal

The announcement mentions developing joint capabilities and information and technology sharing across the UK, US, and Australia and picks up on cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, and quantum communications.

As part of this defence agreement, the UK, US, and Australia are aiming to protect the undersea fibre optic cables that provide part of the military and civilian communication for the West. Both Russia and China possess cyber and submarine technology. They could tap into these cables, allowing for eavesdropping and collecting data through cyber means. It is a matter of national and of NATO Alliance’s security to protect undersea cables.…  Seguir leyendo »

Responsible Behaviour in Outer Space Protects Everyone

As a vital part of both national and international critical infrastructure, outer space is becoming a crowded field with a growing number of space-faring countries, private sector interest, and competition between global powers. And yet the Outer Space Treaty (OST) agreed way back in 1967 and subsequent agreements have not been developed with additional security measures to take account of these new factors.

Despite a clear need for new norms of behaviour and ‘rules of the road’, the Conference on Disarmament has failed to negotiate any new agreement since the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) in 1996. The resulting gridlock grew from an inability of key states to overcome competing interests and diverging priorities and, as a result, negotiating any new binding treaty appears impossible.…  Seguir leyendo »

Hacking group Red Hacker Alliance use website monitoring global cyberattacks in Dongguan, China. Photo by NICOLAS ASFOURI / AFP.

The recently reported compromise of the US Department of Energy and National Nuclear Security Agency (NNSA), whose mission is to maintain safety, security and effectiveness of the country’s nuclear weapons stockpile, poses serious questions around securing the nuclear enterprise from cyberattacks.

And, as a Chatham House survey on nuclear deterrence shows, there are mixed messages and conflicting views on how best to deter an adversary from conducting cyber operations against nuclear weapons systems.

In the survey of more than 80 experts, including government officials, representatives of international organizations, civil society, academia and retired officials, most indicate the need to establish a code of conduct whereby states agree not to attack each other's nuclear assets.…  Seguir leyendo »

Russia's President, Vladimir Putin, during a video link with cosmonauts on the International Space Station (ISS). Photo: Getty Images.

Days before the publication of last week’s report into Russian activity in the UK, and the subsequent call from several UK parliamentarians for a swift response to the ‘Russian threat’, Russia tested a new anti-satellite weapon capability releasing a small projectile from its Kosmos-2543 sub-satellite.

Kosmos-2543, a small satellite contained inside a larger satellite, Kosmos-2542, and 'birthed’ into orbit in late 2019, recently came under scrutiny in January 2020 when it was reportedly caught ‘buzzing’ US spy satellites in Low Earth Orbit.

By releasing a small projectile from the Kosmos-2543 sub-satellite, the US claims that Russia has launched a new projectile into orbit with relatively high speed – estimated at around 500 km per hour – leading to concerns about the potential of Russia to develop this technology as a weapon to target foreign satellites.…  Seguir leyendo »

Indian scientists work at the Tsunami Early Warning Centre of the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS) in Hyderabad. Photo by NOAH SEELAM/AFP via Getty Images.

While most people would agree that resilience - commonly understood as the ability to adapt and bounce back from adversity - is a good thing, the varied responses to COVID-19 have demonstrated that the concept is multi-layered and highly complex.

In many countries, policymakers are calling for increased emphasis on making systems and societies resilient against shocks, while some have already been incorporating resilience thinking into their strategies - either as a result of previous shocks or having understood the systemic challenges they face in being prepared for major shocks, usually following an audit.

Resilience is not just about preparedness for pandemics.…  Seguir leyendo »

The document signed by Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un after their meeting in Singapore. Photo: Getty Images.

If success is to be defined in terms of starting a high-level negotiation process, then the summit meeting of Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un was a success. But if success is defined in terms of content, then the summit has failed because it did not deliver any substance that went beyond what has been agreed previously.

President Trump did mention that North Korea will destroy a missile engine test site as a practical step – and they have already destroyed the warhead test site. But this is not necessarily an indication of long-term policy change. Neither leader made a public commitment that North Korea will halt its nuclear weapons programme – a promising indicator would have been Kim Jong-un agreeing to provide an inventory of North Korea’s nuclear arsenal.…  Seguir leyendo »

Aboriginal elder Eileen Kampakuta Brown, joint winner of the 2003 Goldman Environmental Prize for her struggle to stop construction of a nuclear waste dump in South Australia. Photo: Getty Images.

A quarter of a century after the end of the Cold War, interest in nuclear weapons has revived, not reduced. But for all the debate over the tensions between the United States and North Korea, a taboo still surrounds the lingering impacts of nuclear weapons testing and fears for their future use in conflict.

Our latest research looked not only at the implications of a potential future nuclear conflict, but also the humanitarian consequences of nuclear weapons testing for more than seven decades. Between 1946 and 1996, more than 2,000 nuclear weapons tests were conducted by the US, UK, Soviet Union, France and China.…  Seguir leyendo »

Early last month NATO launched a new maritime security mission, ostensibly to prevent people smuggling across the Aegean Sea. This mission, however, was not originally a reaction to the humanitarian catastrophe at sea. Instead, it was a response to growing Russian assertiveness.

A maritime patrol unit was first discussed in the North Atlantic Council in December 2015, when the Alliance agreed to provide a ‘tailored package of assurances’ to Ankara in a period of heightened tensions after Turkey shot down a Russian jet. The package included measures such as early reconnaissance planes (AWACS), air policing, naval presence in the Eastern Mediterranean, provisions for Maritime Patrol Aircrafts (MPA) and Intelligence, Surveillance & Reconnaissance (ISR), and port visits.…  Seguir leyendo »

Thirteen years ago, North Korea announced its withdrawal from the global nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). Up until the end of 2015, it had since conducted three underground nuclear test blasts, despite strict international sanctions aimed at its nuclear programme and almost universal condemnation of each test.

But last week, it made its most dramatic claim yet - that it had tested a hydrogen bomb. And regardless of whether it was truly an H-bomb (and there is considerable skepticism over whether it was) decision-makers cannot relax - there are still serious long-term implications to what took place this week.

As with all new nuclear weapons possessors, North Korea first developed fission bombs, which are based on the process of heavy nuclei (such as uranium and plutonium) splitting into fragments, releasing large amounts of energy.…  Seguir leyendo »

Thirteen years ago, North Korea announced its withdrawal from the global nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). Up until last week, it had since conducted three underground nuclear test blasts, despite strict international sanctions aimed at its nuclear program and almost universal condemnation of each test.

But on Wednesday, it made its most dramatic claim yet -- that it had tested a hydrogen bomb. And regardless of whether it was truly an H-bomb (and there is considerable skepticism over whether it was) decision makers cannot relax -- there are still serious long-term implications to what took place this week.

As with all new nuclear weapons possessors, North Korea first developed fission bombs, which are based on the process of heavy nuclei (such as uranium and plutonium) splitting into fragments, releasing large amounts of energy.…  Seguir leyendo »