SAEDNEWS: China Urges US to Halt Space Arms Buildup After First Orbital Weapons Deployment
According to Saednews, Beijing and Washington are major geopolitical rivals that have spent years expanding their interests and strategic presence in space, AFP reported.
On Monday, the US Space Force announced that it had deployed “on-orbit space control weapons capable of defending” against hostile actions by adversaries, although it did not provide further details.
China’s Foreign Ministry criticized the move, warning against the “weaponization of outer space, turning it into a battlefield, as well as an arms race there.”
“We urge the US side to stop expanding its military capabilities and preparing for war in outer space,” ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said during a press briefing.
In its announcement, the US Space Force identified China as a security concern, saying Beijing “develops and operates space and counterspace capabilities as part of a military modernization strategy.”
It also pointed to Russia, another major geopolitical rival, saying Moscow “believes space supremacy will be a decisive factor in future conflicts.”
Military competition in space dates back to the beginning of the space race. After the Soviet Union launched Sputnik, the world’s first artificial satellite, in 1957, Washington and Moscow began examining ways to both deploy weapons in space and destroy spacecraft.
Nuclear weapons in space were once considered the primary concern. However, the United States, Soviet Union and other countries signed the Outer Space Treaty in 1967, which prohibited the deployment of weapons of mass destruction in orbit.
Since then, the United States, China, Russia and India have continued developing capabilities that could be used in conflicts beyond the treaty’s restrictions. These include technologies designed to target satellites, which play an important role in military communications, surveillance and navigation.
