The US Defense Department’s Pentagon is building up capabilities to counter China and Russia in space. Washington believes that China and Russia’s various space-based activities pose a threat to US ground forces, assets and satellites in orbit.
However, the Pentagon is keeping the details of how the US is increasing its power in space a secret. However, Defense Department officials have confirmed that, through their efforts, there are going to be major changes in the field of US military operations. Because space is gradually becoming a battlefield.
The US Department of Defense will not only rely on military satellites for information exchange, direction fixing or identification, they will also develop a variety of new space-based instruments. These devices will protect satellite networks from adversary attacks.
The new plan is different from previous US military plans. In 2019, the US Air Force formed a new branch called the Space Force. Last March, General Chance Saltzman, the head of that branch, said, “We must protect our space capability.”
Both China and Russia have tested and deployed ground-based high-power lasers, anti-satellite missiles, and other devices that could destroy U.S. assets in space, according to Pentagon officials and recent classified documents.
News that Russia is developing a space-based nuclear bomb has raised concerns among US officials. It is capable of destroying both commercial and military artificial satellites in orbit. Pentagon officials say Russia used a type of electronic device during the Ukraine war that disabled advanced U.S. weapons systems.
But China has deployed the most weapons in space. In an interview, US Air Force official Frank Kendall said, “China has deployed a large number of weapons in space with a plan to damage our forces. If we cannot defeat them, we will not be able to successfully operate in the western Pacific.”
