This paper examines the militarisation of NanoSats and applies the U.S. Space Force’s Competitive Endurance framework to explore their potential military utility for space-based Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR), Earth Observation (EO) and terrestrial tactical responsiveness. While military NanoSats could offer redundancy in case of adversarial attacks, their dual-use ambiguity and proliferation rate challenge traditional deterrence paradigms. This complicates attribution and managing escalation control. Moreover, military utility of NanoSats is constrained compared to larger satellites as commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) components in military NanoSat development risk cyberattacks, radiation vulnerabilities, diminish sensor ability, and decrease operational life. This highlights the fundamental trade-off of military NanoSats: affordability and modularity enable rapid deployment but expose them to adversarial exploitation. The United States military and aerospace firms have spearheaded the militarisation of NanoSats. Meanwhile, the military NanoSat programmes in several other states highlight how they can democratise space power. Military-commercial collaboration in NanoSat development further blurs the boundaries between civilian and military space operations. Therefore, proliferated deployment of military NanoSat constellations risks exacerbating orbital congestion and crisis misperception. This underscores the imperative of reconciling military innovation in NanoSat development with collective space sustainability, urging stakeholders to balance military advantages of NanoSat constellations with the risk of destabilising Earth’s orbit.
Share this article
The Extraction Trap
Trump’s declaration to “run Venezuela” after Maduro’s capture is a seeming promise of a sudden cure to Venezuela’s ills. However, it ignores the nation’s terminal diagnosis of a century of plunder. The rhetoric of imminent revival on the basis of the speedy return of international oil capital and the promise of 100 billion US dollars in reconstruction funds made the intervention seem like a unique opportunity.
Future Shield: The Saudi-Pakistan Security Partnership
Although the SDMA does not identify an adversary, effectively functioning as a deterrent, it cannot be viewed in isolation from the Israeli belligerence in the Middle East. Israel’s war against Hamas has expanded beyond the genocide of Gaza; it has bombed the West Bank, Lebanon, Syria, Yemen, Iran, and recently Qatar. Tel Aviv’s campaign under the banners of ‘anti-Semitism’ and ‘terrorism’ has engulfed the whole Middle East in a war-like situation, which has generated new enemies and has deepened the instability of the region.
The Trilateral Shift
On 15 January 2026, the Pakistani defence production minister confirmed that an agreement for a new trilateral defence deal between Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and TĂ¼rkiye is in the pipeline, other than the Pakistan-Saudi bilateral deal announced last year.
