The U.S. has acknowledged for the first time that it has weapons in orbit, a disclosure intended to deter China and Russia even as the Pentagon said little about the nature of its capabilities.
Air Force Secretary Troy Meink said Tuesday that the United States now possesses “on-orbit space control weapons.” But he revealed almost nothing about the weapons themselves. He didn’t say, for example, whether they were capable of destructive force or non-kinetic systems that perform tasks such as electronic warfare.
But analysts said the acknowledgment itself is important, as it made public a new deterrent as Russia and China develop their own capabilities.
Victoria Samson, Chief Director of the Space Security and Stability division at the Secure World Foundation, which promotes the peaceful use of space, described the announcement as “extremely significant.”
She said, “no country has ever acknowledged that it has actual weapons on orbit.”
She believes the U.S. likely deployed non-destructive systems, such as jammers, based on Washington’s emphasis on what it describes as “responsible counterspace” that do not generate space debris, Samson said.
But she cautioned that the announcement could prompt other countries to develop similar space weapons, increasing the risks of an arms race in space.
A spokesman for the Space Force said China and Russia were developing systems that could turn space into “a warfighting domain.” The announcement was intended to prevent “adversary miscalculation,” the spokesperson said.
“Simply put, nations reveal the existence of military capabilities to deter adversaries from action and that has the potential to prevent conflict,” said Bruce McClintock, director of the RAND Space Enterprise Initiative.
What Are the Threats?
The Space Force, which began operating in 2019, says China and Russia are developing capabilities intended to disrupt and degrade U.S. space systems.
China has more than 510 satellites capable of performing intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance activities, according to the Space Force. Exercises by the People’s Liberation Army also include the use of jamming equipment against communications systems, radars and space-based navigation systems.
Russia, meanwhile, is developing and testing counterspace systems. In November 2021, it tested a Nudol missile against a defunct Soviet satellite, generating debris that threatened spacecraft and astronauts.
In May 2026, Moscow placed four military satellites near a Western commercial satellite used by Ukraine for intelligence purposes.
U.S. space policy has focused on protecting satellites because of their critical role in providing communications, navigation and intelligence services to military forces on the ground.
The Space Force has been developing its “Golden Dome” project, a program aimed at strengthening U.S. defenses against air and space threats.
The project includes development of what are known as space-based interceptors, a missile-defense system operating from space to track, intercept and destroy missiles before they reach their targets.
A Legal Right
Analysts say deploying weapons in space is legally permissible under international agreements as long as they are not nuclear weapons or weapons of mass destruction.
In 1963, the United States, the United Kingdom and the Soviet Union agreed under the Partial Test Ban Treaty to prohibit the testing or use of weapons of mass destruction in space.
In 1967, the Outer Space Treaty was concluded. Article IV prohibits placing “nuclear weapons” and “weapons of mass destruction” in orbit but does not prohibit the deployment of other types of weapons.
The Space Force spokesperson told MBN that the force remains committed to ensuring the safety, security and sustainability of the space domain.
“Our operations are guided by longstanding principles of professional military behavior and international law.,” the spokesperson said.
The spokesperson nevertheless affirmed the United States’ right to protect itself in space, saying: “Just as we protect ourselves in the air and on the sea, we will protect ourselves in space.”
Adapted and translated from the original Arabic.
