China urges US to halt space weapons build-up — SkimNews
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- Guo Jiakun, China's foreign ministry spokesperson, told a regular press briefing on Tuesday that Beijing opposed the weaponization of outer space and urged the US to "stop expanding military build-up in outer space".
- Troy Meink, US Secretary of the Air Force, said on Monday the United States had "on-orbit space control weapons capable of defending the Joint Force against hostile adversary action" — the strongest Pentagon acknowledgement yet of US weapons in orbit, though he did not identify them.
- China's state-backed Global Times warned that the disclosure exposed Washington's pursuit of "space hegemony" and risked fueling a global space arms race.
- Song Zhongping, a Chinese military analyst, told the Global Times the acknowledgement marked a shift from protecting space assets and relying on ground-based counter-space systems toward directly deploying weapons in orbit.
- State news agency Xinhua wrote last week that a US orbital military exercise risked creating a "security dilemma," forcing other countries to strengthen counter-space capabilities the United States would then regard as new threats.
Why it matters: Meink's comments are the first time a Pentagon official has publicly confirmed orbital weapons, giving China a concrete target for diplomatic protest rather than relying on speculation. With Chinese state media, the foreign ministry, and a military analyst all amplifying the same "space hegemony" framing within 24 hours, Beijing is building a coordinated rhetorical case that could justify accelerated Chinese counter-space investment or a push for an arms-control forum.
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