[Yang Nak-gyu's Defence Club] Public-Private-Military Agreement on Leasing Overseas Satellites for Wartime Situations

Legal Revisions Before Deployment of Small and Medium Reconnaissance Satellites
Ukraine Also Leases Commercial Satellites for Information Assets

The government is reportedly considering leasing overseas commercial satellites for wartime situations. Our military plans to launch ultra-small reconnaissance satellites following five high-resolution medium-sized military reconnaissance satellites, but there are concerns that if a wartime situation occurs before the satellites are launched, acquiring intelligence assets could be disrupted.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

According to the Ministry of National Defense on the 23rd, a first closed-door meeting was held the previous day to discuss the integrated use of wartime civil, public, and military space assets, coinciding with the South Korea-U.S. joint exercise "Eulji Freedom Shield" (UFS). Intelligence agencies such as the National Intelligence Service and the Joint Chiefs of Staff also attended this meeting.

The closed meeting reportedly discussed the possibility of utilizing overseas commercial surveillance and reconnaissance satellites in wartime, taking lessons from the active use of SpaceX’s satellite internet service "Starlink" in the Ukraine war. They also agreed to revise wartime laws that will lead the operation of reconnaissance satellites. Currently, our military lacks reconnaissance satellites and receives images taken by U.S. reconnaissance satellites, but there are no regulations for information exchange between agencies.

The Reconnaissance Satellite Project (Project 425) team of the Defense Intelligence Headquarters attempted to lease reconnaissance satellites from Israel, France, and Germany in 2017 following North Korea’s provocations. The purpose was to independently secure satellite information on sites such as the Punggye-ri nuclear test site and the Dongchang-ri missile launch site. However, the leasing project was canceled due to lack of progress in negotiations over orbital compatibility and leasing costs.

Some argue that as North Korea’s military provocations continue, overseas commercial satellites should be leased to intensively monitor North Korean areas until domestic development of ultra-small satellites is completed. Considering that companies like the U.S. "Capella" and Finland’s "Iceye" have already launched ultra-small SAR satellites with resolutions of 50 cm to 1 m and sell commercial images, technology transfer from overseas companies is also worth considering.

A government official said, “Although the closed meeting did not discuss specific methods for leasing overseas satellites, there was consensus that satellites should be leased in wartime situations and that operational plans should be prepared in advance.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.