The realisation of the increasing vulnerability of the United States to attacks against space assets has caused some to encourage Washington to begin to deploy defensive weapon systems to protect those assets from new weapons. While this could appear to make sense on a visceral or superficial level, a thoughtful analysis of the history of military development reveals basic flaws with this notion. Most importantly, history categorically demonstrates that effective defensive weapon systems will inevitably be countered by effective offensive systems, sparking an ever-spiralling arms race that ultimately leaves all sides less secure. For evidence supporting this contention, one need look no further than the second half of the 20th century and the nuclear arms race that dominated it. Until the United States and the Soviet Union signed the Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) Treaty in 1972, effectively preventing each side from deploying defensive systems, the world was engaged in a nuclear confrontation constantly threatening to escalate out of control. For this reason, I believe that - as with the Antarctic Treaty and the strategic nuclear arms control accords of the last three decades - the international community of space-faring nations will ultimately recognise the need for restraint and seek to develop some legal regime to preserve outer space as a non-militarised - or at least non-weaponised - realm. It is crucial that this happen as soon as possible.

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Graham, Thomas. "International Law and the Military Uses of Space." Disarmament Diplomacy. No. 63 (March-April 2002). [ 1 reference ]