The U.S. officially has weapons in space. Yes, you read that right.
Air Force Secretary Troy Meink officially confirmed the news this week, marking the first public acknowledgment of something Americans have always suspected.
But now, China is urging the U.S. not to turn it into a battleground — or rather, a battlespace?
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‘On-orbit space control weapons’
At the Air, Space and Cyber Conference Monday, Meink said the government and air force “continue to ensure we remain ready to meet the challenges of evolving threats wherever they exist.”
As it turns out, “wherever they exist” happens to mean outer space.
“This is why the United States now has on-orbit space control weapons capable of defending the Joint Force against hostile adversary action,” Meink said.
He didn’t detail the capabilities, specifically, or how long they’ve been in place. However, Meink said they can be employed for offensive and defensive purposes.
“The U.S. has warned about Russian and Chinese weapons testing and operationalization since 2007,” a Space Force spokesperson told ABC News. “Due to their actions, it is no longer a question that space is a warfighting domain. Open communication strengthens deterrence, prevents adversary miscalculation, and normalizes space operations alongside the other services.”
China and Russia respond
Following the comments, China’s Foreign Ministry spoke out against the move, warning the U.S. against the “weaponization of outer space, turning it into a battlefield, as well as an arms race there.”
“We urge the U.S. side to stop expanding its military capabilities and preparing for war in outer space,” ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said in a news briefing, according to Istanbul news outlet Daily Sabah.
Meanwhile, Russia is pushing to keep space “free of any weapons.”
A Kremlin spokesperson said the country is “counting on broad international consolidation to continue working toward the complete demilitarization of space.”
What does the US have in space?
While it’s unclear what weaponized capabilities the U.S. has in space, the Heritage Foundation says the U.S. has systems like the Advanced Extremely High Frequency and Wideband Global SATCOMs, which are used for military operations.
Other items track and characterize objects and potential threats in Earth’s orbit.
“It is critically important that we maintain our dominance not only in the air but in space, and so we’ve had to take steps to make sure that when we’re threatened, we can take care of that,” Meink said Monday.
