China urged the United States to halt its military buildup in outer space after Washington acknowledged it has weapons deployed in orbit, while Chinese state media warned that the move could fuel a global arms race.
The warning comes after a top Pentagon official made an unprecedented acknowledgement about active weapons positioned directly in Earth's orbit.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun stated that Beijing opposes the militarisation of outer space and transforming it into a war zone, according to a report by Reuters.
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"We urge the U.S. to stop expanding military build-up in outer space, and uphold global strategic stability with concrete actions," Guo told a regular press briefing on Tuesday.
On Monday, U.S. Secretary of the Air Force Troy Meink stated that the United States possesses " on-orbit space control weapons able to defend the Joint Force against hostile actions by adversaries," marking the most explicit confirmation yet from a Pentagon official regarding U.S. weapons stationed in orbit. Meink did not name the weapons.
In a report published on Tuesday, China's state-affiliated Global Times said the disclosure revealed what it termed Washington's drive for " space hegemony" and could trigger a global space arms race.
Chinese military analyst Song Zhongping told the newspaper that the acknowledgment signaled a move away from safeguarding space assets and depending on ground-based counter-space systems, toward directly placing weapons in orbit.
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"If the U.S. continues down this path, other countries may be forced to respond," Song said.
Last week, China's state news agency Xinhua warned in an analysis of a U.S. orbital military drill that Washington's efforts to militarise space could trigger a “ security dilemma,” compelling other nations to bolster their anti-satellite defences, measures the U.S. would then perceive as emerging threats.
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