Satellites are playing an increasingly vital role in modern life, supporting everything from navigation and weather forecasting to secure communications and Earth observation. These systems are essential for many sectors, including defense, but their reliance on space-based infrastructure also presents a vulnerability. Technological sovereignty, often thought of as a country’s ability to be self-reliant, is more accurately viewed as the capacity to manage interdependence without sacrificing the freedom to act. This is especially important in the space domain, where the costs and technical expertise required are high. Europe depends heavily on space services for navigation, weather monitoring, Earth observation, and secure communications. These services rely on a complex network of skills, infrastructure, and funding spread across multiple countries, both within and outside the European Union. The space domain includes both the physical infrastructure—such as launch vehicles, satellites, ground stations, and control systems—and the technological components that enable space operations, like electronic parts, onboard systems, and software. These systems provide critical data for positioning, navigation, synchronization, and telecommunications. The European Space Agency (ESA) warns that attacks could target both satellites and the terrestrial systems that support them. Building resilience in this interconnected system requires protecting all parts of the chain, adding redundancy, and planning for backup solutions to ensure services can be maintained or quickly restored. Research into interdependence suggests that control over a central node can grant significant influence. The criticality of a dependency depends on whether the resource is essential, whether alternatives exist, and how quickly they can be activated. Two major European projects, Ariane 6 and Galileo, highlight the complexity of these interdependent relationships. Ariane 6, a new rocket program, involves 13 countries and distributes component manufacturing among European companies, some of which are not EU members, such as Norway and Switzerland. The Galileo satellite navigation system is funded and managed by the European Commission, with technical development led by the ESA and service oversight by the European Union Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA). These programs require cooperation between companies that are also competitors in other markets. The ESA can act as a neutral third party to facilitate this cooperation, enabling knowledge sharing while protecting the strategic capabilities of the companies involved. However, such collaboration can create bottlenecks if a key component, infrastructure, or decision is controlled by a single entity. Research into technological sovereignty suggests that sovereignty should be seen more as an organizational capability than a state of complete independence. This concept is central to discussions about innovation policies and the governance of critical technologies. Open innovation, which involves sharing knowledge and resources across organizations, is growing in the space sector. While it helps share costs and accelerate development, it also raises challenges in determining what knowledge can be shared and what must remain under strict control.