U.S. Dependence on Space Assets Could be a Liability in a Conflict with China
Challenges the United States faces in space “are on a par with
cyber,” the chairman of a key U.S. House panel said as witnesses
described China’s advances in an area where “some vulnerabilities we
just can’t escape”-acknowledging the two nations are now engaged in a
“long-time competition” that cannot be firewalled from other domains.
Speaking on Tuesday, Rep. Randy Forbes (R-Va.), chairman of the House
Armed Services Seapower and Projection Forces subcommittee, asked
senior Stimson Center associate Michael Krepon and the others to gauge
the vulnerability. Krepon said, “We can’t talk ourselves out of that
reality. . . . Satellites can be found.”
A second factor is that “China is not as dependent on space as the
U.S.”- either militarily or commercially-said Ashley Tellis, senior
associate at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
To read the full story, click here.