ARTICLE

Chinese Military Developing Space Assets At "Breathtaking Speed"

News Image By Frank Fang/Activist Post May 02, 2024
Share this article:

Gen. Stephen Whiting, commander of U.S. Space Command, recently warned about China's "breathtakingly fast" development of space military capabilities, following his trips to South Korea and Japan.

"We are seriously focused at U.S. Space Command on our pacing challenge, which is the People's Republic of China," Gen. Whiting told reporters during a call from Japan on April 24.

"The People's Republic of China is moving at breathtaking speed in space, and they are rapidly developing a range of counter-space weapons to hold at risk our space capabilities," he added.

Reports indicate that China is actively working on various space-based weapons technologies, including satellite-mounted lasers, kinetic kill vehicles, and electromagnetic railguns. These capabilities, if fully realized, could potentially enable China to neutralize enemy satellites, intercept incoming missiles, and exert dominance over strategic orbits.


"They're also using space to make their terrestrial forces--their army, their navy, their marine corps, their air force--more precise, more lethal, and more far-ranging."

One particular concern was the number of Chinese satellites in orbit, Gen. Whiting said.

"Over the last six years, they have tripled the number of intelligent surveillance and reconnaissance satellites on orbit, and they have used their space capabilities to improve the lethality, the precision, and the range of their terrestrial forces," he said.

"And so that obviously is a cause for concern and something that we are watching a very, very closely."

China's satellite fleet stood at 359 systems as of January, according to his prepared remarks for a hearing of the Senate Armed Service Committee in February. He also noted that Beijing is developing hypersonic glide vehicles along with other advanced space weaponry to "overcome U.S. traditional missile warning and ballistic missile defense systems."


China's ambitions with regard to the Moon are also among Space Command's concerns.

"We've seen the announcements of China's ambitions to go to the Moon. And those appear to be exploratory and scientific on the surface, but the Chinese aren't very transparent with what they do in space," he said.

"And so we hope there's not a military component to that, but we would certainly welcome more transparency."

A U.S. military report published in January warned that China and Russia are putting up dual-use satellites in space while hiding their military applications. One example is a Chinese satellite equipped with a giant robotic arm, which could be used to grapple other satellites in the future.

China is aiming to put its astronauts on the moon by 2030. Pakistan, South Africa, Belarus, and Nicaragua are among a group of nations that have signed up for a planned moon base led by China and Russia. The moon project is officially known as the International Lunar Research Station.

Originally published at Activist Post




Other News

July 09, 2025From Japan To The U.S - Earthquake Fault Lines Are Awakening

Is there a possibility that a cataclysmic eruption of Mt. Rainier could occur in the not too distant future? On Tuesday morning, Mt. Rain...

July 09, 2025When The Left Wants Blood: The Quiet Slide Toward Political Violence

Democratic lawmakers are hearing increasingly violent rhetoric from their constituents-calls to "break the rules," "fight dirty," and stop...

July 09, 2025The Digital Trap: Europe's Quiet March Toward Total Control

Imagine a world where every transaction you make, every website you visit, every thought you dare to express online is silently recorded, ...

July 09, 2025Shepherds Without Scripture: What Do Today’s Pastors Really Believe?

One in four Mainline clergy doubt the existence of God. These aren't fringe bloggers or deconstructing TikTok influencers. These are the m...

July 07, 2025Hijacking Creation: Scientists May Only Be Years Away From Lab-Made Children

In-vitro gametogenesis - the creation of human sperm and eggs from skin or blood cells--is now just years away. Scientists across Japan, C...

July 07, 2025Death To The IDF? The Disturbing New Normal On The Progressive Left

Once reliably pro-Israel, the Democratic Party has undergone a dramatic reversal on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict-and no demographic re...

July 07, 2025Access Denied: How Age Rules Could Reshape The Internet For Everyone

If identity becomes the new key to the internet, then the next great digital debate won't be about content moderation-it will be about acc...

Get Breaking News