European Union Space Programme

Dimitrijević Duško (Institut za međunarodnu politiku i privredu, Beograd), dimitrijevicd@diplomacy.bg.ac.rs

Since the end of the nineties of the 20th century, the European Union (EU) has been developing its own space initiatives and programmes, such as the European Geostationary Navigation System (EGNOS), Galileo, and Copernicus, which aim to respond to the needs of European citizens and the demands of EU public policies. To ensure their continuity and improve the existing space capacities in the field of providing space services and the transformation and development of digital and information and communication technologies, as well as to enable the fulfilment of priorities in the areas of climate change, transport, security, and defence, on April 28, 2021, the EU adopted Regulation 2021/696 establishing the European Space Programme. The Regulation establishes the Programme’s objectives, the budget, and forms of financing for the period from 2021 to 2027. At the same time, the Regulation establishes the EU Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA), which replaces the European Agency for Global Satellite Navigation Systems (GNSS) established by Regulation 912/2010 of September 22, 2010. In the work that follows, the adopted legal solutions related to the Space Programme are considered, as well as the powers of the EU agency responsible for its implementation.

Keywords: EU Space Programme, EU Space Agency, space technology, space data, space services, space industry