The United States has announced the deployment of weapons into orbit for the first time, prompting China to call for a halt to space militarization and an end to what it describes as preparations for war in outer space. The US Space Force made the announcement on Monday, stating that it had placed "on-orbit space control weapons capable of defending... against hostile adversary action" but did not provide further details about the nature of these weapons.

China, a major strategic rival of the United States in space, swiftly condemned the US move. At a press briefing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun urged Washington to cease expanding its military capabilities in space and warned against turning outer space into a battlefield or sparking an arms race beyond Earth’s atmosphere.

The US Space Force’s statement explicitly identified China as a threat, accusing Beijing of developing and operating space and counter-space capabilities as part of a broader military modernization effort. Russia was also mentioned as a key antagonist, with the statement asserting that Moscow views space supremacy as a critical factor in future conflicts.

The competition to establish dominance in space continues a long history of military rivalry extending back to the Cold War. Following the 1957 Soviet launch of Sputnik—the first artificial satellite—both the United States and the Soviet Union investigated ways to arm satellites and disrupt each other’s space assets. The introduction of the Outer Space Treaty in 1967 sought to curtail these activities by banning the placement of weapons of mass destruction in orbit.

However, the treaty does not prohibit the development of conventional weapons or counter-space technologies that can interfere with or destroy satellites. In recent years, countries including the United States, China, Russia, and India have advanced capabilities to target rival space systems, which are vital for military communications, surveillance, and intelligence gathering.

The deployment by the US Space Force marks a notable escalation in space militarization, signaling heightened concerns about protecting national assets and maintaining strategic advantages beyond Earth. Meanwhile, Beijing’s reaction underscores ongoing tensions over the future of space as a domain for military activity and international cooperation.