The US called the development of the military potential of China and the Russian Federation in space a threat

According to the American general, over the past 20 years, China and the Russian Federation have shown that they can conduct military operations in space.< /p>

China is taking its military potential into space at an “amazing” pace, which increases the risk of war in orbit. This was stated by the head of the US Space Force, General Bradley Chance Saltzman, writes Financial Times. 

“The number of different categories of space weapons that [China] has created and … the speed at which it is doing it , is very threatening,” he warned.

In particular, Salzman said this during a speech as part of his tour of Europe to discuss the possibility of a conflict in space with such states as China and Russia.

“One of the reasons why the US now has a space force is the recognition that over the past 20 years [Russia and China] have developed and demonstrated the ability to conduct military operations in space,” he emphasized. 

< p>The publication recalled that the Space Force was created by former US President Donald Trump in 2019 during his term of office.

Meanwhile, as part of sweeping military reforms launched in 2015, Chinese President Xi Jinping combined space, information and cyber operations, creating a new unit of the People's Liberation Army, the Strategic Support Force.

“In In April, Xi began another restructuring that effectively disbanded the SSP and transferred their functions under the direct control of the military leadership, indicating his desire to strengthen space, cyber and information operations,” the FT added.

The material emphasized, that Russia and China have tested satellites that have hooks that can pull other satellites out of orbit and “kinetic weapons.” Thus, these means can hit satellites and long-range ballistic missiles in outer space. 

“In May, a senior representative of the US Department of Defense said at a hearing before the House Armed Services Committee that Russia is developing ” an indiscriminate” nuclear weapon designed to be launched into space, and in September China conducted a third secret test of an unmanned space plane that can be used to disable satellites,” noted the Financial Times.