THE STRONGEST signals that America is turning against Ukraine have come, this month, from outer space. Ukrainian drones’ connections to Starlink, Elon Musk’s satellite-internet service, cut out(中断，失灵) at speeds above 160kph. Russian ballistic missiles smack(猛击，砰地击中)ed into Kyiv without the usual warnings from American spy satellites. Ukraine’s European allies reacted with deep foreboding(不祥的预感). European defence chiefs can offer Ukraine only partial substitutes for American intelligence and communications networks. And they worry about their own dependence on America’s space-based capabilities, about whether these will stay available if Russia attacks and about how quickly they can develop their own alternatives.(他们担心自己对美国天基能力的依赖，担心一旦俄罗斯发动攻击这些能力是否还能使用，也担心自己多快能开发出替代方案。)
美国正在背离乌克兰的最强烈信号，本月来自外太空。乌克兰无人机与埃隆·马斯克的卫星互联网服务“星链”的连接，在时速超过160公里时便会中断。俄罗斯弹道导弹砸向基辅，却没有像往常那样收到美国间谍卫星的预警。乌克兰的欧洲盟友深感不祥。欧洲防务负责人只能为乌克兰提供美国情报与通信网络的部分替代品。他们担心自己对美国天基能力的依赖，担心一旦俄罗斯发动攻击这些能力是否还能使用，也担心自己多快能开发出替代方案。
All this is hasten(加速，促进)ing efforts to develop alternatives. The day after Ukraine said restrictions had been placed on Starlink, shares in its closest European competitor, Eutelsat, surge(飙升，激增)d by 23%. The European Union then moved to speed up the glacial pace of regulatory approval for merging the satellite-makingbusinesses of three large European aerospace companies, hoping to create one big enough to compete with Mr Musk’s SpaceX.(欧盟随后着手加快三家欧洲大型航空航天公司卫星制造业务合并的监管审批——这一审批此前慢如冰川——希望打造一家足以与马斯克的SpaceX竞争的大公司。) And on October 19th four of the region’s largest telecommunications firms said they wanted to partner with(与……合作) a satellite company to compete with Starlink.
这一切都在加速开发替代方案的努力。乌克兰表示星链受到限制的第二天，其欧洲最接近的竞争对手Eutelsat的股价飙升23%。欧盟随后着手加快三家欧洲大型航空航天公司卫星制造业务合并的监管审批——这一审批此前慢如冰川——希望打造一家足以与马斯克的SpaceX竞争的大公司。10月19日，该地区四家最大的电信公司表示，希望与一家卫星公司合作，以与星链竞争。
Yet Europe has a long way to go before it can hope to achieve “autonomy in space”, as the jargon has it(正如行话所说). In three crucial areas, it depends on America. The first is satellite-internet service for civilians and the armed forces. The second is space-based intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance(侦察) (ISR) and early warning for defence. And the third is launch capacity: the rockets and spaceports needed to put a large number of satellites into orbit.(第三是发射能力：将大量卫星送入轨道所需的火箭和航天发射场。)
然而，欧洲距离实现行话所说的“太空自主”还有很长的路要走。在三个关键领域，它依赖美国。第一是面向平民和武装部队的卫星互联网服务。第二是用于国防的天基情报、监视与侦察（ISR）以及预警。第三是发射能力：将大量卫星送入轨道所需的火箭和航天发射场。
