In the context of SSA, the US is at an important crossroads. As noted in a recent RAND study, “Nations are facing important choices in deciding whether to acquire independent aerospace capabilities, whether to depend on other nations for aerospace support, whether potential costs and vulnerabilities are incurred for those relationships, and whether they are willing politically to accept both the benefits and the risks of dependence.”17 The US also faces an important choice. Is it willing to share its SSA capabilities in order to drive foreign and commercial dependence, or will it continue to hide behind its Cold War-era security blanket and fail to adjust to the changing global environment? It is clear a policy of sharing is the answer…now the devil will be in the details.

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Roberts, Tommy A. "Space Situation Awareness: How Much Should the US Share?." High Frontier Journal. (Winter 2005): 9-12. [ 8 quotes ] [ page 12 ]