US confirms for first time it has deployed a weapon in space

First official acknowledgment

The United States has confirmed for the first time that it has deployed a weapon in Earth's orbit to protect its forces from hostile action. The announcement was made on Monday by US Secretary of the Air Force Troy Meink at the Air, Space and Cyber Conference, as reported by the BBC and SpaceNews.

Meink said the "on-orbit" weapon was necessary to prepare for "evolving threats," but did not elaborate on its capabilities or when it was placed in orbit. According to SpaceNews, Meink also disclosed new milestones for military satellite programs tied to missile defense and long-range targeting during the same appearance.

Context: growing militarization of space

Senior US military leaders had previously signaled plans to expand military capabilities in space, pointing to Russian and Chinese programs designed to disrupt or attack US satellites, which are essential for military communications, surveillance and navigation. The Trump administration has said space-based capabilities and interceptor missiles are a key part of its planned "Golden Dome" missile defense system.

Last year, President Donald Trump signed an executive order emphasizing the role of the US Space Force not only in defense but also as an offensive force. The Space Force, the newest branch of the US military in more than 70 years, was established in 2019 to protect hundreds of American satellites.

A Space Force spokesperson explained that "space control" covers the ability to contest and control the space domain using both kinetic and non-kinetic means to disrupt, degrade and, if necessary, destroy adversary capabilities — for both offensive and defensive purposes.

A 1967 treaty bans weapons of mass destruction in orbit, but major powers — including the US, Russia and China — have in recent years developed other capabilities, such as targeting rivals' satellites. In 2024, the US said Russia had launched a satellite it believed could be capable of attacking other satellites; Russia did not comment publicly. According to the US Space Force, China is developing space and counterspace capabilities as part of a broader military modernization strategy, while Russia views space as a warfighting domain and believes supremacy there will be decisive in future conflicts.