Luna Crisis

Military: Skirmish

Water mining dispute.

A dispute over water mining rights at the Clavius Crater between rival corporations Motokatsu-Kyono Combine and the recently formed Lunar Development Corporation (LDC Inc.) escalates to the brink of the first armed conflict in space. Water ice provides the Lunar Colony with drinking water, oxygen andhydrogen for use as rocket fuel. Motokatsu-Kyono blame LDC for the "software bomb" that wreaked havoc at it's Tokyo headquarters. The corporation threatens "retaliation" if its suspicions are confirmed. Both corporations begin evacuating non-essential personnel from their mining operations, while shipping security personnel from Earth. Reacting to the possibility of armed conflict on the Moon, Helium-3 prices on Earth begin to rise. Helium-3 is rare on Earth but relatively common on the lunar surface.   Before events can escalate out of control, the UNSA manages to negotiate a peaceful settlement to the Lunar Crisis. As a direct result of the Lunar Crisis, the UNSA is given the mandate by the UNSC to establish the Lunar Security Force (LSF), a small detachment of soldiers and security specialists, tasked with keeping the peace and mediating any disagreements. In addition the Outer Space Treaty is revised, preventing any one organisation restricting the supply of a vital resource like water to other organisations.