While the world’s attention remains fixed on visible military fronts, another line of confrontation is taking shape above our heads—silent, technical, yet decisive. Beijing’s decision to submit proposals to the International Telecommunication Union for mega-constellations totaling nearly 200,000 satellites is not a bureaucratic quirk. It is a show of power. Space is becoming a new strategic territory. With CTC-1 and CTC-2, China is not merely announcing a technological ambition. It is staking a claim to space. The altitudes mentioned—ranging from low Earth orbit to much higher layers—point to a strategy of massive and sustained occupation of the space domain. This is no longer merely about connecting remote areas or improving civilian services. Space is becoming a strategic domain, just like the oceans or cyberspace.
In the face of Starlink, China is not simply seeking to offer a commercial alternative. It is challenging a model. Today, SpaceX effectively imposes its technical standards, frequencies, and architectures. Tomorrow, a Chinese constellation of equivalent or even greater scale could fragment the global space ecosystem, impose an orbital economy, and spark a standards war. Those who control the constellations also control the standards, the interconnections, and thus the economic dependencies. On one side, a private American company, closely tied to Washington’s strategic priorities; on the other, a Chinese state-led project, clear about its uses and intentions. Beijing is sending a message to the countries of the Global South: there is an alternative to Western orbital infrastructure. In a world of sanctions, pressure, and disruptions to access, having a non-aligned space network is becoming a matter of sovereignty.
Even without specifying their functions, these constellations will inevitably have dual-use applications: secure communications, navigation, surveillance, and resilience in the event of conflict. The experience in Ukraine has shown just how crucial control of satellite networks is to the conduct of modern military operations. With low Earth orbits becoming saturated, China is preparing for an environment in which space will be contested, disrupted, and even militarized.
Read more on October 1, 2026