U.S.-China Space Race Driving Increased Spending.

• Date: 01 July 2018

The United States and China are boosting investments in space capabilities as the Pentagon prepares for an era of great power conflict.

China spent about $11 billion on space technologies and activities in 2017, according to a recent report by the Center for Strategic and International Studies, "Space Threat Assessment 2018."That is second only to the U.S., which spent about $48 billion in this area.

"As part of its mission to become a dominant actor in the domain, China has increased spending... to improve its space capabilities," the report said. Beijing is focusing on many lines of effort, including rapid development and launch...