White House pressures US space firms to skip Paris space summit, sources say
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Scientists testing spacesuits during a press event on Sept 3 at a new lunar simulation facility in western Germany, called LUNA.
PHOTO: AFP
- The Trump administration pressured US space companies to avoid attending the Paris space summit to prevent implied support for European space policies.
- Some planned announcements between US and European companies at the summit were cancelled, and SpaceX decided not to attend.
- The summit aims to foster dialogue on space cooperation but is not intended to make policy or budget decisions.
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WASHINGTON - The Trump administration pressured US space companies not to attend a high-profile space summit in Paris organised by French President Emmanuel Macron, triggering a last-minute reshuffle and the cancellation of some announcements, according to people familiar with the matter on Sept 3.
The White House’s Office of Science and Technology Policy hosted a call a week ago with several US space companies planning to attend the Sept 9 to 10 event and said their attendance could suggest support for European policy positions with which the US disagrees, four of the sources said.
The summit will feature speeches from Macron and European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen, as European countries ramp up investments in civil and military space capabilities and reduce reliance on US firms like Elon Musk’s SpaceX for satellite communications and rocket launches.
The White House officials on the call, which was first reported by Politico, steered clear of explicitly directing companies not to attend, but made strong suggestions against attending, the sources said.
Some announcements planned for release at the summit between European and US companies have since been cancelled, according to one of the sources.
SpaceX will no longer attend, one of the sources said.
An OSTP official said, “The Trump Administration continues to collaborate with allies and partners in space. We look forward to productive conversations at the Space Summit on key priorities including science missions, exploration programmes, and space security.”
France has said the “International Space Summit” will open a dialogue between participants including heads of state and other decision makers and industrial or scientific groups from some 120 countries.
The aim is to discuss various declarations of intent, but the informal political summit is not designed to take policy or budget decisions, European space officials said.
Macron’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. REUTERS
