Just days after the US accused China of testing ‘dogfighting’ satellites in low Earth orbit, Beijing has clapped back with a sharp rebuttal. A report from China’s state-run Global Times dismissed the US allegations as a “budget-driven” tactic which was “part of a broader effort to curb space advances by emerging powers” and preserve the US dominance in the sector.

The report insisted that Beijing’s space programme was for peaceful purposes, “dedicated to advancing human space technology”.

General Michael Guetlein, vice chief of space operations of the US Space Force (USSF) claimed at a defence conference last week that the agency observed “five different objects in space manoeuvring in and out and around each other in synchronicity and in control”.

Beijing said Mr Guetlein’s narrative was an attempt to justify higher military spending and hype the “China, Russia threat theory” narrative.

“Following US President Trump’s return to office, the new administration aimed to cut military spending. Against this backdrop, various branches of the US military were desperate for budget increases and sought to secure more funding by hyping up so-called “threats” from China, Russia, and others”.

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Dogfighting satellites

The USSF stated that Mr Guetlein was referring to three Chinese Shiyan-24C experimental satellites and two Shijian-6 05A/B experimental space objects that had been seen carrying out complex manoeuvres in low Earth orbit.

“That’s what we call dogfighting in space. They are practicing tactics, techniques and procedures to do on-orbit space operations from one satellite to another,” said Mr Guetlein.

“This is the most complex and challenging strategic environment that we have seen in a long time, if not ever,” Mr Guetlein highlighted, adding that the force needs “capabilities to deter and, if necessary, defeat aggression” to “guarantee that the advantage is in our favour” into the future.

“There used to be a capability gap between us and our near peers, mainly driven by the technological advancement of the United States that capability gap has significantly narrowed.”

Ever since the three Shiyan satellites were launched in 2022, western military officials and experts have claimed that they are being deployed to test military capabilities, such as grappling with satellites of rival nations in space.