The United States has admitted for the first time that it has deployed weapons in space. Speaking at the Air, Space & Cyber Conference in Maryland on Monday, US Air Force Secretary Troy Meink stated that the US has already developed “on-orbit space control weapons”—weapons capable of protecting US joint forces from enemy attacks. Russia and China have condemned this move by Washington. News agency AP reported this development. However, Meink did not provide details regarding the specific type of weapons deployed or how they function. In 2024, the US revealed that Russia was developing a new anti-satellite weapon capable of being launched from space. At the time, the White House stated that the weapon posed no immediate threat. Nevertheless, reports concerning Russia’s anti-satellite weapon highlighted long-standing US concerns regarding potential threats from Russia and China in space—concerns driven largely by the fact that a vast amount of US infrastructure and communication systems rely on satellites.
In his address at the conference, Meink also noted that the Air Force is incorporating more automated systems into its capabilities. He predicted that the US Air Force would look “dramatically different” by 2032. For instance, he suggested that one-way attack drones could replace cannons or artillery as the “primary lethal weapon” on the battlefield in the future. Meink stated, “We are further enhancing our preparedness against existing threats.” US President Donald Trump established the Space Force in 2019.
