A Study on the National Utilization Mechanisms of French Space Launch Vehicle Technology Using Actor-Network Theory: Focusing on the Applicability to Republic of Korea’s Defense Policy/Acquisition Programs The Republic of Korea's Defense Policy/Acqu...
A Study on the National Utilization Mechanisms of French Space Launch Vehicle Technology Using Actor-Network Theory: Focusing on the Applicability to Republic of Korea’s Defense Policy/Acquisition Programs The Republic of Korea's Defense Policy/Acquisition sector is currently enjoying an unprecedented boom, driven by a series of successful export achievements including the K9 Thunder, Chunmoo, Cheongung, and T-50. However, a critical review is required to determine whether these accomplishments can be sustained over the next 10 to 20 years. For the continuous growth of the Republic of Korea's Defense Policy/Acquisition, it is imperative to maintain and strengthen the various networks currently being formed; this stands as the core challenge facing the sector today. To overcome the limitations of traditional human-centric network analysis, this study adopts the Actor-Network Theory (ANT) as a research methodology for Defense Policy/Acquisition. ANT acknowledges the agency of non-human elements, such as technology. This approach is particularly relevant because, in the field of Defense Policy/Acquisition, technological elements perform critical actions on par with human actors. Meanwhile, because Defense Policy/Acquisition is directly linked to national security, it demands an extreme level of confidentiality, which inherently limits access to primary data. To circumvent this constraint, this study focuses its analysis on the space technology sector, which features high dual-use (civil-military) applicability and a relatively diverse array of publicly available data. Specifically, this study traces the utilization of space launch vehicle technology by France, a nation that has pursued an independent security trajectory and developed its capabilities upon this foundation. From the US-Soviet Cold War era to the current US-China strategic competition, France has consistently pursued strategic autonomy. It is a state that has striven to establish a dominant position in Europe through network formation. By leading the establishment of the European Space Agency (ESA) and co-developing the Ariane launch vehicle with neighboring countries, France actively utilized this technology as a core mechanism to form, maintain, and strengthen its global network. This study analyzes the process through which France solidified its network using space launch vehicle technology across four strategic stages: First, leveraging the structural void in launch vehicle demand during the Cold War, France engaged in 'Problematization' by establishing its own launch vehicle as the 'Obligatory Passage Point' for satellite launches. Second, it employed an 'Interessement' strategy, dismantling existing networks and attracting other nations and actors into its own network. Third, it executed 'Enrollment' by assigning new tasks to actors entering the network, thereby inducing their continuous participation. Fourth, through a standardization process, France promoted values such as the peaceful use of space, as well as national defense and R&D cooperation. By inducing others to develop satellites tailored to the specifications of French launch vehicles, France successfully reached the 'Black-boxing' stage, taking its dominant status within the network for granted. These processes functioned as a mechanism to further solidify a network centered around France. Although the Republic of Korea succeeded in the practical launch of a space vehicle through the 4th launch of Nuri in 2025, there are still limitations to fully utilizing this achievement at the national level. The launch of major domestically developed satellites still relies on foreign launch vehicles, and there are instances where timely launches are missed because satellite designs are tailored to overseas launch vehicle specifications. This suggests that if the Republic of Korea's Defense Policy/Acquisition becomes fixated solely on technological development, it may encounter various structural limitations. Therefore, for the continuous growth of the Republic of Korea's Defense Policy/Acquisition, efforts must be made to avoid repeating the structural limitations currently faced by the space launch vehicle sector. To achieve this, 'Problematization' must be initiated to establish a position as a highly reliable, low-cost space launch provider and to position the Republic of Korea as a core actor driving regional space projects. By capitalizing on the logistical constraints of launch sites in the US or French Guiana, along with employing low-cost strategies available prior to full commercialization, the Republic of Korea needs to attempt an 'Interessement' strategy—dismantling existing networks and drawing other nations into a new network centered around the Republic of Korea. Furthermore, an 'Enrollment' process is required to expand the roles of participating nations beyond space projects into comprehensive cooperation at the national and Defense Policy/Acquisition levels. Ultimately, by naturally inducing others to accept the values and systems proposed by the Republic of Korea, the nation must solidify its dominant status and reach the 'Black-boxing' stage where this standard becomes the undisputed norm. To proliferate this space sector strategy into space defense and further into the entire defense industry, the Republic of Korea's Defense Policy/Acquisition must be elevated beyond simple arms exports into a robust network relationship that fulfills shared values. In conclusion, to successfully maintain and strengthen the future Defense Policy/Acquisition ecosystem, in-depth research based on Actor-Network Theory (ANT)—which actively embraces non-human actors like technology—must be continuously pursued. Keywords : Actor-Network Theory (ANT), Space Launch Vehicle Technology, Republic of Korea's Defense Policy/Acquisition, Network Growth Strategy