US: China's new anti-satellite weapon is a threat

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
Criticizing China's test of an anti-satellite weapon, the State Department said Friday "modern life as we know it" depends on the security of space-based technology. Deputy spokesman Tom Casey said the administration raised concerns about the test with Chinese officials here and in Beijing, making clear its opposition to "any militarization of space." He said tests of the kind that China carried out "produce extensive amounts of space debris, have the potential for disturbing or accidentally disrupting communication satellites or other kinds of space vehicles that are out there." A report released Friday by a congressional advisory panel said some movement within the Chinese military for development of an anti-satellite weapons system that could be used against US targets without warning. The report said that even a small-scale attack could have "catastrophic" consequences for the United States.