This law was enacted in the Diet in 2008 and declares that Japan can use space militarily for nonaggressive, defensive purposes. The law allows Japan to send up and maintain high-resolution reconnaissance satellites and warning satellites for the early detection of ballistic missile launches. A space development headquarters has also been established in the cabinet headed by the prime minister, and a space agency has been set up in the Cabinet Office. The legislation unifies policy related to the use of outer space, which had been advanced by a number of ministries and agencies.