The US has confirmed that it has deployed a military weapon into orbit for the first time, marking a significant escalation in the contest over space between Washington, Russia and China.
Troy Meink, US Air Force secretary, said the “on orbit” weapon had been deployed to protect American forces and that the US was prepared to respond to “evolving threats”. He declined to disclose the system’s capabilities or when it had been placed in orbit.
The disclosure comes as Washington becomes increasingly concerned about the development of offensive space capabilities by Russia and China, with military planners warning that satellites have become potential targets in any future conflict between major powers.
Senior US military leaders have previously alleged that Russia possesses an anti-satellite nuclear weapon capable of attacking satellites in low Earth orbit. Moscow rejected the claims at the time as “fake news from Washington”.
China is also developing increasingly sophisticated space capabilities. Reuters reported earlier this month that patent documents, procurement notices and academic papers indicated Chinese work on systems designed to capture other spacecraft and refuel them while in orbit.
Meink was speaking at the Air, Space and Cyber Conference, a US military professional development event, where the growing importance of space to national security was a central theme.
The White House has said space-based capabilities, alongside interceptor missiles, will form part of Donald Trump’s proposed “Golden Dome” defence system, which is intended to provide the US with greater protection against missile threats.
Trump’s commitment to strengthening the military role of space dates back to his first presidency, when he established the US Space Force in 2019.
The administration has since moved to reinforce the service’s role beyond protecting American satellites. Last year, Trump issued an executive order underlining its responsibilities in defending US space assets while also enabling it to operate as an offensive force.
US Space Force chief of space operations General Chance Saltzman described China in July as a “substantial” threat, citing the rapid development of its military space capabilities.
Washington and its allies are increasingly conducting exercises intended to prepare for the possibility that a future conflict could extend beyond Earth.
In April, US Space Command and allied forces conducted war games simulating a potential nuclear orbital strike by Russia. General Stephen Whiting said the scenario was one the US did not want to see but had been forced to prepare for based on intelligence and reporting.
Britain has also expanded its co-operation with US Space Command. Last September, the two countries publicly disclosed an operation in which US Space Force personnel in Colorado directed an American military satellite to manoeuvre close to a British satellite.
The operation took place while a Chinese satellite passed about 83km beneath the two spacecraft, according to space intelligence company Slingshot Aerospace. Military experts said the manoeuvre was likely intended to demonstrate allied unity and warn Beijing against interfering with British space assets.
A US Space Force spokesman told the BBC: “Space control encapsulates the mission areas required to contest and control the space domain – employing kinetic and non-kinetic means to affect adversary capabilities through disruption, degradation and even destruction, if necessary.
“These capabilities can be employed for offensive and defensive purposes at the direction of combatant commands.”
The growing activity reflects a broader shift in military strategy. In February, it emerged that Russian satellites had intercepted communications from European spacecraft since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, while other Russian satellites had conducted suspicious manoeuvres near European satellites.
Military experts have compared the behaviour to Moscow’s actions on Earth, arguing that Russia is testing the limits of what its rivals will tolerate.
For Washington and its allies, the increasingly crowded and contested orbital environment means space is no longer simply a communications and surveillance domain. It is becoming another potential battlefield — one in which control of critical infrastructure could prove decisive in any major conflict.
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