THE United States accused Russia on Thursday of test-firing an anti-satellite weapon in space, warning that the threat against Washington’s systems was “real, serious and increasing.”
US Space Command “has evidence” that Moscow “conducted a non-destructive test of a space-based anti-satellite weapon” on July 15, it said in a statement.
“Clearly this is unacceptable,” tweeted US nuclear disarmament negotiator Marshall Billingslea, adding that it would be a “major issue” discussed next week in Vienna, where he is in talks on a successor to the New START treaty.
The treaty caps the nuclear warheads of the US and Russia – the two Cold War-era superpowers.
The system used to conduct last week’s test is the same one that Space Command raised concerns about earlier this year, when it maneuvered near a US government satellite.
It is the latest example of Russian satellites behaving in a manner “inconsistent with their stated mission,” the US Space Command said.
The statement also came as China launched a rover to Mars on Thursday, a journey coinciding with a similar US mission as the powers take their rivalry into deep space. (AFP)
