Washington, Sept. 15 (SANA)The United States has publicly acknowledged for the first time that it has deployed weapons in Earth’s orbit, marking a significant development in Washington’s military posture in space.

US Air Force Secretary Troy Meink said the United States now has “on-orbit space control weapons” capable of protecting US and allied forces against hostile actions, but declined to disclose the systems involved or provide details about their capabilities.

Meink made the disclosure during the Air & Space Forces Association’s Air, Space & Cyber Conference in National Harbor, Maryland, saying the deployment was intended to strengthen US readiness as threats in space evolve. He later pointed to advances by China and Russia in explaining Washington’s decision to develop capabilities to protect its operations in orbit.

The US Space Force said “space control” capabilities can involve both kinetic and non-kinetic means and can serve defensive or offensive purposes, although officials have not identified what weapons are currently in orbit.

The announcement comes amid growing competition among major powers over military capabilities in space. The 1967 Outer Space Treaty prohibits placing nuclear weapons or other weapons of mass destruction in orbit, but does not impose a blanket prohibition on all conventional weapons in space.