Air Force secretary confirms U.S. has on-orbit space control weapons; China urges halt to buildup
NEW · Tue. ~11:15 a.m. EDT
Air Force Secretary Troy Meink told the Air & Space Forces Association conference Monday that the United States now has "on-orbit space control weapons capable of defending the joint force against hostile adversary action" — the first public Pentagon acknowledgment of such systems, with no type, number, or launch date disclosed. A Space Force spokesperson said space control can use kinetic and non-kinetic means to disrupt, degrade, or destroy adversary capabilities when directed. On Tuesday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun urged Washington to stop expanding military capabilities in outer space and warned against weaponizing the domain; Meink tied related Golden Dome work to Space-Based Interceptors and a Space-Based AMTI constellation with first launches this month.
Lt. Gen. David N. Miller Jr. speaks to Space Delta 8 — Satellite Communications guardians at Schriever Space Force Base, Colo., June 24, 2024. File photo; not from Meink’s Monday AFA keynote.
U.S. Space Force / 1st Lt. Danielle Rose (public domain)
Center-left view
BBC’s Tuesday write-through, Defense One’s National Harbor account, and Xinhua’s Tuesday MFA brief cast Meink’s disclosure as a first-of-its-kind public admission that risks accelerating an orbital arms race: experts quoted by Defense One said rivals may now match the rhetoric, while Guo Jiakun urged the U.S. to stop expanding military buildup in outer space, oppose weaponizing the domain, and uphold strategic stability — framing the announcement as preparation for war in space rather than quiet deterrence.
Sources: BBC · Defense One · Xinhua
Center-right view
Air & Space Forces Magazine’s Monday keynote report, DefenseScoop’s first-confirmation wrap, and The War Zone’s Space Force follow-up frame the line as intentional deterrence: Meink called the phrasing "very well thought out," refused kinetic/non-kinetic details so adversaries cannot game them, and linked on-orbit control to defending joint-force dominance against China and Russia counterspace programs while Golden Dome’s Space-Based Interceptor and SpaceX-backed AMTI constellation move toward fielding.
Sources: Air & Space Forces Magazine · DefenseScoop · The War Zone