Defense Intelligence Agency cites 70% growth in Russia and China’s combined space assets since 2019

WASHINGTON — A brand new report from the Protection Intelligence Company hyperlinks China and Russia’s elevated operational house capabilities lately to their rising intent to increase future battle into house.

The unclassified “Challenges to Safety in House” report follows a 2019 DIA report that surveyed house and counterspace packages being pursued by adversary nations, together with Russia, China, North Korea and Iran. The 2022 report highlights progress in Russian and Chinese language on-orbit programs in addition to efforts to higher set up their navy house capabilities

“Proof of each nations’ intent to undercut the USA and allied management within the house area will be seen within the progress of mixed on-orbit belongings of China and Russia, which grew roughly 70% in simply two years,” DIA Intelligence Officer for House and Counterspace John Huth mentioned throughout a Tuesday press briefing.

That growth of functionality follows a 200% mixed improve between 2015 and 2018 and displays a recognition by the 2 international locations of the USA’ reliance on house belongings and its function as a pacesetter within the area.

“Because the variety of spacefaring nations develop and counterspace capabilities grow to be extra built-in into navy operations, the U.S. house posture will probably be more and more challenged and on-orbit belongings will face new dangers,” Huth mentioned. “A safe, steady and accessible house area is essential as challenges to the USA and our allies’ house capabilities proceed to extend.”

Huth famous that as a result of the report was accomplished earlier than Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, it doesn’t embody any particulars on how Russia could also be utilizing counterspace capabilities in that battle.

The report additionally highlights considerations about the specter of on-orbit particles, stating that the chance of collision between “huge derelict objects” in low Earth orbit is rising and “will proceed to rise till a minimum of 2030.” That menace is exacerbated by anti-satellite testing similar to Russia’s check of an ASAT final November.

“Even when worldwide and nationwide pointers had been made legally binding, mitigation thresholds had been made extra stringent, or if compliance had been even near 100%, there would nonetheless be a formidable particles downside from the remnants of the primary 63 years of house operations,” the report states.

The DIA’s survey follows the discharge of counterspace functionality experiences from two Washington, DC, think-tanks: Safe World Basis and the Heart for Strategic and Worldwide Research. These experiences pointed to elevated counterspace exercise over the past yr, and the CSIS report predicted 2022 may very well be a “pivotal turning level in house safety” because of Russia’s use of counterspace capabilities like GPS jamming and cyber assaults in its struggle on Ukraine.