UK, US Criticize Russian Space-Based Test-Firing as Anti-Satellite Weapons

Russia is being accused by the US and UK of firing a projectile that resembles a weapon into space that could be utilized to target satellites in orbit.

Space war

The US State Department expressed its concerns about what appeared to be in-orbit weaponry that is designed to take down satellites.

According to BBC, Russia's defense ministry previously announced that it was testing a new form of technology that would perform checks and monitoring on the country's space equipment.

The US government had also raised its concerns about Russia's satellite activity in the past.

The accusations made by the UK mark the first occasion the country has made criticizing remarks about Moscow and its test-firing into space. The events come a few days after the UK government reportedly underestimated Russia's threat to the world.

On Thursday, Christopher Ford, the US Assistant Secretary of State for International Security and Non-Proliferation, stated accusations against Moscow saying the Russian government was hypocritical after it announced it wanted to extend its arms control to include outer space.

Ford said that Moscow wanted to restrict the United States's capability in space while having no plans to minimize its own agendas.

Air Vice-Marshal Harvey Smyth, the head of the UK's space directorate, expressed his concerns of Russia's latest satellite test, which he considered to bear the characteristics of a weapon.

Urging Moscow to take responsibility for its actions and immediately stop further tests, Smyth said that the events threaten the peaceful era of space and would potentially cause a large amount of debris to build-up which could pose risks to satellites and space systems.

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The allegations also come amid rising tensions between Mosco and Washington as the US government has accused Russia of cyberattacks that have targeted organizations conducting coronavirus vaccine research and development, as reported by CNN.

Russia is also being accused of hiring Taliban forces to target and assault US troops deployed in Afghanistan.

Moving forward

The commander of US Space Command, General John W. "Jay" Raymond, who is also the US Space Force Chief of Space Operations, stated that the recent satellite system was the same as the previous system that raised US concerns last year when the Russian government deployed near an American satellite.

Raymond added that incident is further evidence that Moscow is pushing forward with its attempts at developing and testing space-based systems that put international rivals at risk.

Anti-satellite weapons of Russia and China have been considered as one of the United States's reasons for requesting a spaced-focused military branch that led to the creation of the Space Force that Raymond now leads.

Playing a critical role in navigation, US satellites also provide advantages in weapons targeting and intelligence gathering, including the monitoring of North Korea's weapons program and military activity of Russia and China.

The State Department announced a few days before Russia's space-based weapons testing that it would hold a "Space Security Exchange" meeting that would include Russian representatives by the end of the month.