Russia's Foreign Minister told national leaders attending the General Assembly today that it is time to establish a global agreement outlawing the deployment of weapons in space, warning they endanger the existence of all States.
The days of their cold war may have passed, but Russia and the United States are in the midst of another battle -- this one a technological fight over the United States monopoly on satellite navigation.
Just over a month after a Chinese satellite was intentionally smashed into bits in a test of anti-satellite technology, a Russian rocket body exploded accidentally, littering the skies with more than 1000 additional pieces of space junk. The amount of space debris created is roughly on par with that released during China's test, which was considered the worst space debris event in the history of space launches. And experts say the debris is likely to stay in orbit for a long time, creating a danger to other spacecraft.
President Vladimir Putin criticized U.S. plans for space-based weapons, saying it was the reason behind a recent Chinese anti-satellite weapons test.
China and Russia are developing space weapons and are among several nations working on systems to threaten U.S. satellites with lasers or missiles, says the director of the Defense Intelligence Agency.
Sergei Ivanov, Russia's defence minister, says all security restrictions on the country's GLONASS satellite navigation system will be lifted on 1 January to promote economic development.
In response to the recently updated U.S. National Space Policy, the Chinese and Russian governments have issued broad threats intended to dissuade the United States from actually deploying -- as opposed to researching -- weapons in space.
The second failed test launch of Russia's experimental Bulava submarine-launched ballistic missile in as many months has renewed doubts about the viability of the country's strategic nuclear deterrent, and in turn increased fears that Russian policy makers might adopt "hair-trigger" operational procedures to guarantee their nuclear forces could survive and respond to a first strike. Some commentators fear that Russian officials have equipped at least one of their secure underground leadership command posts with a "Dead Hand" doomsday communications rocket.
President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday that Russia was concerned about foreign nations planning to deploy weapons in space and developing armaments he called destabilizing.
Alexei Arbatov and Gen. Vladimir Dvorkin of the Carnegie Moscow Center gave a presentation and answered questions on the current state of Russian civilian and military space programs and how Russia's space policies are related to its security concerns, including nuclear deterrence.