Last week, American authorities believe Russia deployed a counter space weapon.
For the second time, Russia has chosen to launch a counter space weapon that can disable or ruin satellites. According to Wood, who acts as the American alternative representative for Special Political Affairs at the UN, the last time this happened was in 2022.
This action occurs at a significant moment when the US and its allies are becoming more worried about Russia's attempts to invent a nuclear space weapon that can damage commercial and government satellites.
At a recent UN Security Council meeting, Wood stated, "On May 16, Russia sent a satellite into the low orbits of Earth that is most likely a weapon designed to harm other satellites in the same region." He also pointed out that Russia deployed this new counter space weapon into the same low-orbit zone as a US government satellite.
Wood described the development as "troublesome" and believed it goes against Russia's assertions that they are only searching for space security. A US official, who spoke to CNN, said they had known about this launch for at least several weeks and that it was closely monitored by North American Aerospace Defense Command and US Northern Command.
Russia sent out at least two NOTAMs, or Notices to Airmen, on May 16. One of these was for the actual launch of the satellite, while the other was for the splashdown of a Russian space launch booster near the coast of Baja California, Mexico.
The defense official explained that, "The good news is that the NOTAM is the responsible, ordinary way for countries to promote secure air and maritime activities.
The US and its allies have been trying to prevent Russia from creating a nuclear space weapon due to the potential havoc such a weapon could bring. It could destroy satellites by creating a vast electrical surge when detonated, severely impacting the innumerable commercial and government satellites that support communication, commerce, and online activities.
In April, the US and Japan jointly proposed a UN Security Council resolution demanding no space-based nuclear weapons be created. However, Russia, as expected, vetoed the resolution -- a move the US saw as strong evidence of Russia's intention to develop such a weapon.
Jake Sullivan, the US National Security Adviser, reported that, "The US believes that Russia is developing a satellite armed with a nuclear device." Furthermore, he stated that, "If this were not the case, Russia would not have rejected the resolution."
The Russian weapon is still being developed and hasn't yet been launched. US authorities have publicly emphasized this fact, but they are concerned that its use would mark a serious escalation in the realm of nuclear weapons.
Russia's own resolution, which proposed a complete and permanent ban on any space-based weapons, was introduced earlier this month. However, the US vetoed it on Monday, as Wood argued that this resolution "fails to achieve the simple objective we had set out to accomplish several months ago: to reaffirm the commitments of the Outer Space Treaty and prevent a space arms race."
Wood was especially critical of the resolution's proposal for a binding mechanism to prohibit all space-based weapons, arguing, "Such a ban cannot be verified" and that Russia's resolution was an attempt to steer attention away from the creation of its new satellite, which is allegedly armed with a nuclear device.
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Source: edition.cnn.com
