RismadarVoice Reporters
September 17, 2026
The United States has made its clearest public acknowledgement yet that it has weapons operating in orbit, a disclosure that signals a new phase in military competition beyond Earth and has drawn immediate warnings from China and Russia over the risk of a widening space arms race.
US Air Force Secretary Troy Meink confirmed that the Space Force possesses what he described as “on-orbit space control weapons,” although Washington has kept their type, number and capabilities classified.
The acknowledgement is significant because satellites have become critical to modern military operations, providing communications, navigation, intelligence and missile-warning capabilities. Washington, Beijing and Moscow have increasingly focused on developing systems capable of protecting their own space assets and countering those of potential adversaries.
Meink said keeping some information about US capabilities secret remained necessary, but argued that acknowledging their existence could strengthen deterrence.
US officials have repeatedly raised concerns about counter-space capabilities being developed by China and Russia, citing them as part of the justification for strengthening American military capabilities in orbit.
CHINA WARNS AGAINST SPACE MILITARISATION
China responded by warning Washington against accelerating the militarisation of outer space.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun reiterated Beijing’s opposition to the weaponisation of space and urged the United States to halt what China described as a military buildup beyond Earth.
Russia also expressed concern over the disclosure.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said Moscow had not received formal notification from Washington about the capability, although he said the announcement was not unexpected.
Ryabkov called for a legally binding international agreement aimed at preventing an arms race in space, arguing that there was still an opportunity for major powers to establish rules to limit further escalation.
DETAILS OF US WEAPONS REMAIN CLASSIFIED
Washington has not publicly disclosed exactly what weapons are operating in orbit or how they are designed to function.
“Space control” is a broad military term covering capabilities intended to protect friendly space systems or restrict an adversary’s ability to use its own space infrastructure.
The US acknowledgement does not establish that nuclear weapons or other weapons of mass destruction have been deployed in orbit.
The 1967 Outer Space Treaty prohibits placing nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction in orbit, but it does not impose a comprehensive ban on all conventional military capabilities in space.
The latest disclosure underscores the growing strategic importance of space as the United States, China and Russia expand military capabilities designed to protect satellites and maintain access to systems increasingly central to national security and modern warfare.
