The oldest recorded talking weapon is Sharur, "smasher of thousands," a Sumerian mace that could fly, relate intelligence remotely and direct fire down from the sky. Some of you may have already drawn the parallels with satellites, except those require organizations and technical expertise to be able to talk to the rest of the military. And satellites, as we say, are not weapons. Defense spending does not always come from the defense budget. France announced in September new commercial investments in space satellites and services, just a few months after President Francois Hollande revealed the first increase to French defense spending in a quarter-century. Most reporting explains the French investment in commercial space as market-driven, to stay competitive and prevent American companies from cornering the market. But keep in mind what kinds of satellites are being targeted: high-resolution optical and high-throughput broadband.
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