Space Force rushing to 'stay ahead of growing threat' as China and Russia try to 'deny US access to space,' general says

SPACE Force is rushing to stay ahead of a growing threat as China and Russia try to “deny the US access to space,” a top general has claimed. 

General John Raymond, the chief of space operations for Space Force, said on Thursday that China and Russia are building a “suite of capabilities” to try to keep the US out of space. 

“One of the main reasons why we established the Space Force was to go fast and to stay ahead of a growing threat," Raymond said, according to the Washington Examiner. 

"The best way we know how to deter conflict from [the] beginning or extending into space is to do so from a position of strength,” he continued.

“We're prepared to protect and defend our capabilities today. We will remain prepared to protect our capabilities into the future.”

China has already established itself as an aggressive space power after using a rocket to destroy one of its own weather satellites in 2007. 

Russia has also tested out anti-satellite weapons. 

China and Russia have both proposed arms control treaties with the US but they have been shot down by US officials. 

A senior US diplomat last month accused them of being “the two countries that … have turned space into a warfighting domain.”

'JAMMING US SATELLITES'

“We have seen what China has done with, and Russia, has done in developing a suite of capabilities designed to deny our access to space,” Raymond added on Thursday. 

"Everything from reversible jamming of communications satellites and GPS satellites, to directed energy weapons, to satellites in orbit that are designed to destroy U.S. satellites in orbit, to missiles that are being launched from the ground to destroy satellites like China demonstrated — Russia has the same type of program — and to cyber threats.”

Space Force was launched in December 2019 as the first new military service since the establishment of the Air Force as an independent entity in 1947. 

Donald Trump said at the time: "When it comes to defending America, it is not enough to merely have an American presence in space. We must have American dominance in space.

"We are going to have the Air Force and we are going to have the Space Force, separate but equal. It is going to be something. So important."

The push to create a military space service began well before Trump entered the White House but his relentless advocacy dulled what remained of opposition inside the Pentagon.

'US WILL REMAIN BEST IN THE WORLD'

Since its launch. Space Force has assembled 6,400 personnel known as “Guardians.”

“There is still significant work to do, but we’ve got the pieces planned out and in place already making a difference,” Raymond said. 

“And I will say that we are focused and committed to moving fast and developing the capabilities and the tactical timelines that we need to stay ahead of this growing threat and remain the best in the world.

“I look at the challenges that we face, again, with a very congested, very competitive, and very contested domain, I think there are even more opportunities.”

Raymond’s comments come after it was revealed that Space Force is preparing to "protect and defend US interests" as far away as the moon after an official report warned of a lunar war. 

An Air Force Research Laboratory reported details on how the Earth's only natural satellite – and the space around it – could become a new military frontier, according to SpaceNews.

The 23-page document, “A Primer on Cislunar Space”, was published by the Air Force Research Laboratory.

The report explains it "is targeted at military space professionals who will answer the call to develop plans, capabilities, expertise, and operational concepts."

It adds: "When established in December 2019, USSF [United States Space Force] was tasked with defending and protecting U.S. interests in space.

"Until now, the limits of that mission have been in near Earth, out to approximately geostationary range (22,236 miles).”

The report adds: "With new US public and private sector operations extending into cislunar space, the reach of USSF's sphere of interest will extend to 272,000 miles and beyond – more than a tenfold increase in range and 1,000-fold expansion in service volume."

Cislunar space is the space between Earth and the moon.

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