A space quad: Russia, China, North Korea and Iran

The US has flagged as a growing threat to global security an increasingly deepening four-way autocratic quadrilateral quasi-alliance that’s deepening space collaboration among Russia, China, North Korea and Iran.

This month, Air & Space Forces Magazine reports that General Stephen Whiting, commander of the United States Space Command (USSPACECOM), expressed concern over those four countries’ increasing cooperation in space.

Whiting highlighted in particular the workings of bilateral ties between Russia and each of the other three nations as Russia seeks assistance for its war in Ukraine, the magazine says.

Air & Space Forces notes multiple examples of space cooperation among the four, citing

• a Russian rocket launching an Iranian satellite;
• plans for a Russo-Chinese lunar nuclear power plant; and
• a defense pact between Russia and North Korea, which could benefit North Korea’s space and missile capabilities.

The magazine mentions that US officials have also noted Russia’s use in Ukraine of Iranian and North Korean weapons, with support from China to increase arms production. It notes that this growing partnership adds complexity to the already contested space domain, where the US has observed Russia deploying a counter-space weapon co-planar to a US national security satellite, indicating operational intent.

Air & Space Forces mentions that the US has compared Russian activities to “nesting doll” satellites capable of deploying kinetic weapons. Meanwhile, it says, US Space Force (USSF) leaders have described China’s rapid expansion in space capabilities – including counter-space technologies and support for terrestrial forces – as “breathtakingly fast.”

Space cooperation adds another element to a sophisticated four-way