Technology transfer has been rapid, especially for micro-satellites, and many other countries may soon be capable of building their own satellites. For instance, the United Kingdom's Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd has undertaken joint technology transfer programs with Pakistan, South Africa, South Korea, Portugal, Chile, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia and China. All said, a multitude of countries, at some level, could enter a costly race to space weaponization, or align with major powers that do so. Moreover, the first country to do so might actually provide the gateway to space exploitation. At huge expense, it will have broken the technological frontier only to realize that once the heavens are opened to weapons, everyone else goes much more cheaply.

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Deblois, Bruce M. "The Advent of Space Weapons." Astropolitics. Vol. 1, No. 1 (Summer 2003). [ 15 quotes ]