0191-9067/81 /030207-12$02.00/0 Copyright ® 1981 SUNSAT Energy Council PROJECTING INTERNATIONAL POLITICAL REACTION TO SPS M. J. STOIL and J. R. BROWNELL, JR. KAPPA Systems, Inc. 1501 Wilson Boulevard Arlington. Virginia 22209 Observations of bloc and national behavior in international forums on global resource and technology issues suggest that primary attention in the projection of international reaction to satellite power systems should be focused on the political dimension of such reactions. Specifically, attention should be focused on the perceptions of national interest invoked by the development and implementation of SPS. This argument is based on the following assumptions: • SPS differs from communications satellite technology in that SPS invokes exploitation of resources which may be considered part of the “common heritage of mankind.” Further, SPS impinges on the future relative economic and political power capabilities of sovereign states. • International reaction to developments affecting “common heritage” resources consists of the varied reactions of national governments and blocs rather than a single, rational, relatively coherent consensus reaction. • The primary concern of nearly all national governments is the pursuit of perceived national interest rather than abstract technological concerns or concerns of international equity unrelated to national goals. • The distribution of influence and power among international actors in the field of satellite technology will be more likely to determine international agreements affecting SPS than existing legal norms or treaties-in-force. The following discussion provides support for these assumptions, based on the experiences at the Third U.N. Conference on Law of the Sea (UNCLOS III) and the recent World Administrative Radio Conferences (WARC), and addresses their implications for predicting international reaction to SPS. Specifically, these assumptions suggest that the optimum means for achieving international acceptance of SPS lies in demonstrating its advantages to the national interests of key members of the international community. In effect, the success of SPS abroad will depend on how the SPS concept is presented outside the U.S. The organizational characteristics of the ultimate agency to be responsible for the development and commercialization of solar power satellites acquire importance in terms of the contributions of the organizational characteristics to this “selling” process. An earlier version of this article was presented by the authors to the 1980 SPS Program Review and Symposium, Lincoln. Nebraska. The authors express their appreciation to Dr. Peter E. Glaser of Arthur D. Little, Inc., and Dr. Alan Daurio of PRC for their kind comments and suggestions.
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