China warns of a space arms race after US confirms orbital weapons

Wednesday 16 September 2026 - 16:50

By: Azzat Manal

China warns of a space arms race after US confirms orbital weapons

China has warned that the growing deployment of military capabilities in outer space could trigger a new arms race after the United States publicly acknowledged for the first time that it has weapons operating in orbit.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun called on Washington to halt what Beijing described as an expansion of military capabilities in outer space and urged the United States to take concrete steps to preserve strategic stability and international security.

The warning followed remarks by US Secretary of the Air Force Troy Meink, who said the United States now has “on-orbit space control weapons” capable of defending US forces against hostile actions. Meink did not disclose the number, type or specific capabilities of the systems, leaving important details about the programme classified.

The announcement represents a significant shift in Washington’s public discussion of military activities in orbit. While the United States, China and Russia have long been developing technologies designed to protect or disrupt space assets, US officials have generally avoided publicly confirming that offensive or defensive weapons were already deployed in orbit.

US officials have presented the systems as part of efforts to protect military forces and space-based infrastructure from hostile actions. Meink has also linked the development of American space-control capabilities to concerns about advances by China and Russia, arguing that the United States needs to maintain the ability to operate in an increasingly contested space environment.

The exact nature of the weapons remains unclear. Space-control capabilities can include technologies designed to interfere with satellite communications, disrupt sensors or otherwise affect an adversary’s space assets. Experts have also noted that such systems can include non-kinetic technologies such as electronic jammers and lasers, which may disable or interfere with satellites without physically destroying them.

Beijing’s reaction reflects wider concerns that the deployment of weapons in orbit could encourage other major powers to strengthen their own military capabilities in space. Chinese state media has argued that the US disclosure could encourage countries to develop countermeasures, potentially creating a cycle in which defensive measures are interpreted as offensive preparations.

The issue is particularly sensitive because modern military operations depend heavily on satellites. Space-based systems support communications, navigation, intelligence gathering, surveillance and missile-warning capabilities. Any disruption to these systems could therefore have consequences well beyond the space sector.

The growing competition also involves Russia, which has developed and tested counter-space technologies and has repeatedly criticized the militarization of orbit. Moscow has likewise called for international efforts to keep outer space from becoming a battlefield.

International law places certain limits on military activity in space. The 1967 Outer Space Treaty prohibits the placement of nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction in orbit, but it does not ban all conventional military technologies or military activities in space. This distinction has allowed major powers to develop extensive space-based capabilities while remaining within the treaty's existing framework.

The United States has maintained that its space capabilities are necessary to protect national security and deter potential attacks. China, meanwhile, argues that expanding military deployments could undermine strategic stability and increase the risk of confrontation beyond Earth.

The disagreement comes as Washington, Beijing and Moscow increasingly treat space as a critical component of national security. Satellites have become essential to military communications and battlefield coordination, while advances in autonomous systems, electronic warfare and space-based surveillance are creating new possibilities for both defence and disruption.

For now, the lack of publicly available information makes it difficult to determine precisely what weapons the United States has deployed or how they would be used. What is clear is that Washington’s decision to acknowledge their existence has intensified an already active debate over the future of military competition in orbit.

As major powers continue developing technologies to protect their satellites and potentially interfere with those of adversaries, the central challenge for the international community will be preventing competition in space from developing into a destabilising cycle of escalation.