Русский
INTERVIEWER Japan’s Fourth Basic Plan for Space Policy over the next decade was announced in the summer of 2020. What direction will Japan be taking in its space activities?
MATSUI TAKAFUMI I have been involved in Japan’s space policy since before the current Committee on National Space Policy took shape. This committee was formed under the auspices of the Cabinet Office after the 2012 abolishment of the Space Activities Commission in the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology.
Initially, Japan’s space policy was focused on research and development under the Education Ministry. Not enough attention was being paid to security issues or space utilization, though, and the budget was limited. This discouraged many small businesses from participating in the program and there was a real fear that Japan would lose the capability to build its own rockets to launch satellites into space.