The United States military has confirmed that it has deployed weapons in orbit, a rare public acknowledgement that analysts fear could intensify competition with Russia and China over military activity in space.
The US Secretary of the Air Force, Troy Meink, disclosed the development on Monday while speaking at the annual Air, Space, Cyber conference.
Meink said the US currently had “on-orbit” space-control weapons, indicating that the systems had already been deployed and were operating in orbit around Earth.
“Today, we continue to ensure we remain ready to meet the challenges of evolving threats wherever they exist,” Meink said on Monday at the annual Air, Space, Cyber conference. “This is why the United States now has, on-orbit, space-control weapons.”
He declined to provide details about the nature or location of the weapons, saying he would not discuss their “specifics”.
A spokesperson for the US Space Force explained that space-control capabilities could involve both kinetic and non-kinetic methods designed to interfere with an adversary’s space assets.
The spokesperson said space-control capabilities could involve “employing kinetic [combat] and non-kinetic means to affect adversary capabilities”.
“These capabilities can be employed for offensive and defensive purposes,” the statement added.
The disclosure immediately drew criticism from China and Russia, with both countries warning against the expansion of military activity beyond Earth.
China’s foreign ministry accused Washington of “preparing for war in outer space” and urged countries not to turn space “into a battlefield, as well as an arms race there”.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Russia believed “that space must be free of any weapon” and called for “the complete demilitarisation of space”.
Although the US, Russia and China have long been believed to be developing space-based military capabilities, the public confirmation by Washington marks a significant acknowledgement of weapons already operating in orbit.
Such systems could include signal jammers capable of disrupting satellite communications, as well as kinetic weapons designed to physically damage or destroy satellites.
Jonathan McDowell, an astronomer who has spent decades tracking rocket launches, said it was reasonable to believe the US had already deployed such systems, potentially including jammers, through satellites carrying classified payloads.
He warned that Russia and China could respond by developing or deploying comparable weapons.
“In the long run, I find it questionable whether this is in the US national interest, and for sure we will see comparable systems from China, if they don’t already have them,” he said.
McDowell also cautioned that even the use of radio jamming would represent a major escalation in military activity in space.
Victoria Samson, chief director of space security and stability at the Secure World Foundation, said the announcement could force the US to prepare for similar moves by Beijing and Moscow.
“Well, that’s huge, because I don’t think any US government official has ever said that before,” she said.
The militarisation of space dates back to the 1950s, when the US and Soviet Union explored ways of attacking satellites. Efforts were nevertheless made over subsequent decades to keep space primarily focused on peaceful activities.
The 1967 Outer Space Treaty, signed by the US, Soviet Union and other countries, prohibited the placement of weapons of mass destruction in orbit. However, it did not impose a blanket ban on conventional weapons in space.
The end of the Cold War in 1989 ushered in a period of greater international cooperation, including the construction of the International Space Station by several countries. But military interest in space has grown steadily in the 21st century.
Russia attracted international condemnation in 2021 after destroying one of its inactive satellites during an anti-satellite missile test. The incident generated thousands of pieces of debris in orbit.
The possibility of conflict in space has raised concerns about the creation of dangerous orbital debris. Because satellites travel around Earth at extremely high speeds, even small fragments produced by an attack could damage other spacecraft and trigger a chain reaction.
McDowell said attitudes within the US about the use of space for military purposes had also changed.
“The US sees conflict in space as something that is conceptually normalised, whereas 20 years ago it was ‘no, we will never want to do that’,” he said.
“I think this is wrong,” he added. “I also think it is still not too late to change course on this. To work mainly with China, because they are the real competitors in space now. I hope the US establishment takes a step back and rethinks some of this.”
