White House national security spokesperson John Kirby said the Russian weapon has not been deployed and does not pose an immediate threat.
“We’re not talking about a weapon that can be used to attack human beings or cause physical destruction here on Earth,” he said.
But he said the potential deployment of this new Russian weapon was alarming because it can threaten GPS and communications networks.
“There’s a lot of things that satellites do for the whole population of Earth,” he added. “Any capability that could disrupt that … should be of concern to anybody.”
President Biden is taking steps to address the issue, including by opening a dialogue with Russia and through discussions with allies.
Reports indicate it is a nuclear weapon that could be used to attack other satellites.
That would violate the 1967 Outer Space Treaty
prohibiting the deployment of nuclear weapons or weapons of mass destruction in space.
“It’s absolutely violating a treaty and it would be a highly provocative act,” said Susi Snyder, program coordinator at the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons.
House Intelligence Committee Chair Mike Turner (R-Ohio) first notified the public of a new threat in a statement on Wednesday, sparking alarm across the country.
Information on the new Russian weapon is being made available to all members of Congress
, and the White House was expected to brief lawmakers on Thursday.
Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said he has known about the threat since January and is confident the Biden administration has a plan to deal with the weapon.
“The United States can’t rely on other nations to handle matters like this,” he said. “We must do it ourselves, and we will.”
Read the full report at
TheHill.com.
