MIDDLE POWERS IN THE SPACE DEVELOPMENT: A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF SOUTH KOREA AND INDONESIA

Abstract

“Middle powers” is an academic term that encompasses the external manifestations of a state actor, such as spatial scale, resource volume, economic strength, geostrategic position, and international influence. Research on middle powers has gradually progressed from area studies to governance research on specific development fields. This article begins by providing the theoretical definition of middle powers and reviewing the practices of state actors, then applies the concept of middle powers to the space field. By reviewing the new theoretical concept of “space middle powers” and designing the “Space Power Ladder” model in methodology, this article summarizes the development-related factors and analyzes comparative cases, highlighting the similarities and differences in the background and implementation paths of South Korea and Indonesia in the space field, which are middle powers in a general sense. By demonstrating the causal relationship between the space development of different middle powers and related influencing factors, this article proposes theoretical supplements and innovations for both typology and general research of global middle powers.