"Thar's GOLD in them thar minor planetoids!"
and that, in a nutshell, is all it takes for motive: pure, unadulterated, utterly shameless greed.
what will it take to make that motive take hold of peoples' throats?
relative ease of access to extra-orbital space.
what will it take to make THAT happen?
a self-sufficient lunar colony with manufacturing facilities and a mass-driver launch system.
so... how do we get THERE from here?
Dump the Treaty and register claims. That's all.
Nobody knows where to invest anymore and there is a lot of money sloshing around. So much just sitting at 5%, and all of it ready for investment in something other than molasses and tar.