Washington is devising pretexts to ignore Moscow’s proposals to develop an international legal framework to prevent an arms race in space. This was stated by Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia Sergey Ryabkov. So the diplomat commented on the Pentagon’s accusation that the Russian military allegedly conducted an anti-satellite missile test.

“I would like to urge colleagues in Washington not to glance at the surface of our proposals, thinking up excuses for ignoring them, but at least for a moment to think what is the meaning of these ideas. We are talking about not placing weapons first in space, ”said Sergey Ryabkov.

He also noted that Moscow has reasons to be concerned about Washington’s plans to deploy missile defense elements in space.

“If the United States rejects this proposal, the natural conclusion that we make is that they have taken the course towards creating shock systems for deployment in outer space. There is no other logical conclusion from their position of denial, ”Ryabkov emphasized in a TASS commentary.

Recall, on the eve of the command of the US Space Forces announced that the Russian military tested a direct-ascent anti-satellite (DA-ASAT) anti-satellite missile. This is stated in the message published on the website of the military department. According to the commander of the US Space Forces, General John Raymond, the Pentagon is aware of the test launch of the Russian direct-to-intercept anti-satellite missile of April 15 and is monitoring the situation.

  • Donald Trump and US Space Force Commander General John Raymond
  • Reuters
  • © Leah Millis

“The test of the Russian direct-to-intercept anti-satellite missile is further evidence that the space systems of the United States and its allies are facing real and growing threats,” the general said, adding that the United States is “ready and determined to deter aggression.”

John Raymond also called Russia's behavior "hypocritical." According to him, Moscow is promoting arms control initiatives in outer space aimed at limiting the capabilities of the United States, but at the same time supposedly does not intend to stop work on its programs to create anti-satellite weapons.

Substitution of concepts

It should be noted that the Pentagon does not openly call Russian weapons, which are supposedly aimed at satellites. However, earlier, the American CNBC channel, citing sources in the defense department, called the A-235 Nudol missile defense system being developed in Russia (called the PL-19 Nudol in the USA) as such a weapon.

The television channel talked about this rocket with reference to a classified report by American intelligence, which claims that these weapons will supposedly be sent primarily to satellites.

In an open Pentagon report published in early 2019, the A-235 Nudol missile defense is not directly mentioned, however, the US military is paying particular attention to Russia's modernization of the missile defense system covering Moscow. 

According to the authors of the document, Russia and China allegedly “are developing potential in the field of anti-satellite weapons”, from which a potential threat to US objects in space emanates.

“Russia, for example, maintains and modernizes its long-standing strategic missile defense system around Moscow, which has 68 missiles with a nuclear warhead. Also, various types of mobile missile defense systems of shorter range were put into operation throughout Russia, ”the report of the US defense department says.

The A-235 Nudol missile defense has attracted attention not only in the United States, but also in the UK. Earlier, the British analytical agency Jane's published material that described the capabilities of ASAT systems that Russia is allegedly developing. As stated in the publication, anti-satellite missiles or spacecraft have the most destructive potential.

  • Radar missile defense system "Don-2N" in the Moscow region
  • RIA News
  • © Kirill Kallinikov

Speaking about modern Russian developments, Jane's ranked the Nudol defense program as an ASAT system, which creates means to destroy satellites in low Earth orbit.

In fact, we are talking about the modernization of the layered missile defense system that protects the Moscow region and the Central industrial region. Work on updating the missile defense system has been underway since the 2000s and includes both hardware replacement and modernization of interceptor missiles.

The layered A-235 Nudol missile defense system should in the future replace the current A-135 Amur missile system. As part of the Nudol project, modernized 53T6M missiles are being developed, which have long been criticized by the Pentagon. The US military claims that missiles can not only intercept ICBMs, but also disable satellites. For its part, the Russian Ministry of Defense noted that the missile defense system is designed to protect against “airspace attack” strikes.

In January 2020, the commander of the missile defense system, Major General Sergey Grabchuk, said in an interview with the Red Star Ministry of Defense that new missile defense missiles would be on combat alert in the near future.

“Successful work is underway on the development of promising missile defense. This will allow expanding combat capabilities and improving the characteristics of the new missile defense system in the near future, ”the major general emphasized.

As the editor-in-chief of Arsenal of the Fatherland magazine Viktor Murakhovsky explained in a commentary to RT, any missile defense system with atmospheric interception missiles, just like intercontinental ballistic missile warheads, can bring down satellites.

“The USA also has such systems, Aegis systems can also intercept in near space. If we talk about the militarization of space, the United States has the largest space constellation of military satellites. But the key issue is to prevent the deployment of strike systems in space, and neither Russia nor China has such plans, ”the expert emphasized.

Aegis also recalled the capabilities of the American missile defense system in an interview with RT.judge Yuri Knutov.

“The US has Aegis missile defense systems that can intercept rockets and satellites in near space. Missile defense A-235 "Nudol" is a complex of missile and space defense. The relevance of such protection is increasing in connection with the US plans to deploy kinetic and neutron weapons in space. The American side has no right to object to this from the point of common sense, ”said the expert.

“They want to dominate in space”

The statement made by the commander of the US Space Forces is not the first attack on Russia from the Pentagon. Representatives of the United States and NATO regularly recall a certain “threat” that Russian and Chinese projects allegedly pose for outer space.

So, in February 2020, the commander of the NATO Joint Armed Forces for Transformation, French General Andre Lanata, said in an interview with The Washington Examiner that the danger emanating from Russia and China extends to space. According to the military, the maneuvering of Russian and Chinese spacecraft close to the satellites of Western states is a demonstration of this danger.

“Until now, everyone considered space to be a safe zone, but this is no longer the case,” said a NATO spokesman. 

  • Minuteman III Intercontinental Ballistic Missile Launch
  • Reuters

The fact that Russia and China will “threaten” American spacecraft was announced in 2017 by the head of the Strategic Command of the US Armed Forces (then this post was held by General John Heiten. - RT ). Speaking at Stanford University in California, Hayten emphasized that the United States should prevent this. The general added that Washington has accepted the challenge allegedly thrown by Beijing and Moscow and is preparing for retaliatory steps. 

Practical actions were not long in coming; in 2019, Donald Trump signed a decree on the creation of a Space Command within the US Armed Forces (SPACECOM). Speaking at a ceremony marking the launch of SPACECOM, the US President announced the start of a “new magnificent chapter” in the history of the American army.

“Thanks to the Space Command, America’s superiority in space will never be challenged and will never be in jeopardy, because conflicts, as we know, are best prevented by preparing for victory,” Trump said, calling space “a field of military operations.” 

According to Viktor Murakhovsky, the US military command is trying to justify the expansion of the military budget with statements about the strength and danger of a possible enemy in space. In addition, the United States has long-playing plans for outer space.

“Back in the days of Ronald Reagan, the United States began to implement the Strategic Defense Initiative program, which included the deployment of strike systems in space. Then this idea was not realized for technical reasons, but this idea was not completely forgotten. Now the United States has set its sights on deploying a missile defense system in space, it is planned to do this by 2030, ”the expert noted.

A similar point of view is shared by Yuri Knutov. According to the expert, now Washington is creating an “information cover” for its own military activity in space.

“In fact, the United States has never completely abandoned Reagan's Star Wars program. The US wants to dominate space, use space to control other states. Now, when new technologies appear, plans from this program are beginning to be implemented, we are talking about creating a strategy for a quick global strike, where space is the most important element, ”the expert summed up.