China urges U.S. to ‘stop preparing for war in outer space’

Beijing – On 15 September 2026, China’s Foreign Ministry issued a stark warning to Washington, urging the United States to “stop preparing for war in outer space.” The admonition was delivered by spokesperson Guo Jiakun during a regular press briefing in Beijing, following the U.S. Space Force’s public confirmation that it had placed “on‑orbit space control weapons” in orbit for the first time. 

Guo said the deployment “turns outer space into a battlefield and fuels an arms race,” and called on the United States to halt the expansion of its military capabilities in space and to take concrete steps to preserve global strategic stability. The Chinese statement echoed Beijing’s long‑standing advocacy for the peaceful use of outer space and its opposition to weaponisation, as outlined in the 1967 Outer Space Treaty, which bans nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction in orbit but does not prohibit conventional systems. 

The U.S. announcement, made at the Air & Space Forces Association conference in National Harbor, Maryland, described the new systems as defensive tools designed to protect U.S. forces against hostile adversary actions. The disclosure marks the first official acknowledgment by the United States of operational weapons in orbit, a move that analysts say could lower the threshold for future space‑based conflict. 

China’s reaction underscores rising tensions between the two powers, which have been competing for dominance in satellite navigation, communications and lunar exploration. Both nations have advanced space stations and lunar programs, but the latest development heightens concerns that the militarisation of space could spiral into a broader arms race, prompting calls from the international community for renewed dialogue on space security.