China labels US as biggest threat to space safety
Date
11/17/2024 7:27:26 AM
(MENAFN) China has criticized the United States as the greatest threat to space security, accusing Washington of provoking a potential space arms race. In a statement from the Chinese Defense Ministry, spokesman Zhang Xiaogang responded to recent comments by General Stephen N. Whiting, the commander of US Space Command, who warned that China is building a space arsenal and threatened to deploy anti-satellite weapons targeting both Russia and China by 2025.
Zhang called the US allegations about China's space capabilities “irresponsible” and “a distortion of facts.” He argued that the US is using the so-called "China threat" as an excuse to expand its own anti-satellite weaponry and military presence in space. He also pointed out that the US regards space as a "war-fighting domain," increasing the risk of militarization that undermines global security.
Zhang’s comments came in response to reports that the US Space Force is planning to deploy a new anti-satellite system called the Counter Communications System (Meadowlands), designed to disrupt Chinese and Russian satellites. The system, which is running two years behind schedule, is expected to be operational between January and March 2025, marking a significant step in the growing militarization of space.
While the Pentagon has accused China of developing anti-satellite weapons, China has denied these claims, instead accusing the US of escalating tensions by militarizing space. The US has also raised concerns about Russia’s space capabilities, suggesting Moscow may possess anti-satellite weapons, possibly of a nuclear nature, but Russia has dismissed these accusations as unfounded.
Both China and Russia have consistently expressed opposition to an arms race in space, calling for the preservation of space for peaceful purposes.
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