ESPI hosts Second Space Media Roundtable in Berlin focused on Germany’s role in European space strategy
Date: 2025-11-06
By: Nana Appiah Acquaye
The
European Space Policy Institute (ESPI) has convened its second Space Media
Roundtable in Berlin, bringing together industry leaders, policy experts and
journalists to discuss Germany’s position and strategic contributions within
Europe’s space ecosystem. The event, hosted by the German Space Agency at DLR,
comes as preparations advance for the ESA Council Ministerial (CM25) under
Germany’s presidency and as the country allocates €35 billion for space
defence.
Discussions
centred on Europe’s ambition to strengthen its global standing as a space
power, improve the competitiveness of its industrial base and SMEs, and deepen
transatlantic cooperation. Speakers explored the geopolitical implications of
Europe’s space strategy, the scale of investment needed to match international
competitors, and the policy instruments required to support innovation and
sustainability across the sector.
Panellists
included Walther Pelzer of the German Space Agency at DLR, ESPI’s H. Ludwig
Moeller, Dr. habil. Antje Nötzold of Technische Universität Chemnitz/Bundeswehr
University Munich, Torben Schütz of the Bertelsmann Stiftung, Marie-Christine
von Hahn and Matthias Johannes Wachter from BDLI, and Ernst K. Pfeiffer of
AKRK. The session was moderated by Lina Pohl.
ESPI
expressed appreciation to the German Space Agency at DLR for hosting and noted
that continued dialogue between government, academia, industry and media will
be essential as Europe defines its priorities ahead of CM25 and beyond.
