Warning of increased orbital warfare risks, the US Space Force head has alarmed about the ‘mind-boggling’ speed of China’s military space deployments. “The number of different categories of space weapons that [China has] created and… the speed with which they’re doing it is very threatening,” said US Space Force chief General Chance Saltzman, as per the Financial Times. During his European tour, Saltzman highlighted the growing threats from China and Russia in space and emphasised the importance of collaborating with European allies on deterrence strategies. “One of the reasons you have a space force in the US now is in recognition of the last 20 years, [Russia and China] have developed and demonstrated the ability to conduct war fighting in space,” he was quoted as saying by FT. In an interview with Politico, Saltzman stated that China’s swift military expansion in space poses a greater concern to Washington than potential Russian space-based nuclear weapons. The Space Force chief said it was ‘concerning’ that China is launching “hundreds of satellites” as part of a targeting system that can be used to aid missions on Earth. Space-based assets have been leveraged by the US military since long for communications and missile targeting. China’s growing focus on space aims to challenge one of the US military’s historical advantages in that domain. Beijing has rejected US concerns about its advancing space program, denying that it presents any threat to other nations. The foreign ministry accused Washington this year of “repeatedly hyping up China” as a threat as “an excuse for the US to expand its forces in outer space and maintain military hegemony”, the report by Financial Times added.

Full report : US Space Force chief General Chance Saltzman highlighted the growing threats from China and Russia in space and their advancements.