On the evening of December 10, 2021, the Institute of International and Strategic Studies (IISS), Peking University (PKU) convened the 55th "North Pavilion Dialogue" series of lectures. Mrs. Li Hongbo, Researcher and Deputy Chief Engineer of No. 1 Research Academy under China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC), delivered a lecture on the topic of "Competitive Situations and International Governance Rules in Outer Space". The lecture was hosted by Gui Yongtao, Assistant President of IISS, PKU and Assistant President of the School of International Studies, PKU.

At the beginning of the lecture, Mrs. Li Hongbo analyzed and compared the current space capabilities of China, the U.S., and Russia by enumerating in-depth data, and pointed out that China is becoming a major space power from a space power, gradually ranking second in the world. By contrast, the U.S. dominance in outer space is waning.

Focusing on the international governance rules in outer space, Mrs. Li Hongbo introduced its development and basic framework, and put forward that there are still some legal boundary issues to be determined. Since the end of the Cold War, human space activities have shifted from being bipolar to multi-polar, and have become increasingly monitorable and traceable, featured by weaponization in outer space, which accelerated development of space combat forces, and entanglement of issues in outer space and cyberspace. Mr. Li further pointed out that under such circumstances, a new round of negotiations for international rules has become active: first, new rules have been proposed at the United Nations level, e.g. the Resolution on "Reducing space threats through norms, rules and principles of responsible behaviours "; second, many non-governmental organizations were also involved in the game of rule reconstruction; third, the U.S. pushed for the formulation of rules in outer space via internal rules during this period.

Next, Mrs. Li Hongbo elaborated on the challenges facing China's aerospace industry. She mentioned that the Biden administration has partly continued the radical stimulus for space development during the Trump administration and sped up formulating space rules and norms. At present, the U.S. still maintains a certain intergenerational lead in technology, and has never sat idly by and watched the rise of China's aerospace industry. In this regard, China's development philosophy is as follows: first, build a community with a shared future for mankind and change the zero-sum thinking that has long existed in outer space since the Cold War; second, change the idea that the strong seek absolute superiority and absolute security in outer space and establish a common security concept; third, take the reconstruction of outer space governance rules as the starting point for the realization of a community with a shared future in outer space.

In the Q&A session, Mr. Li Hongbo exchanged views with the teachers and students on the allocation of satellite resources, the China-Africa space cooperation, the role of Space X in the future U.S. commercial space program, and the effects of China-U.S. technological decoupling in the aerospace field on cooperation and exchange at the civil or commercial aerospace level.

Editor: Li Fangqi