U.S. to defend space with military force

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"No nation, no non-state actor, should be under the illusion that the United
States will tolerate a denial of our right to the use of space for peaceful
purposes," he said. "We reserve the right to defend ourselves against
hostile attacks and interference with our space assets," he said.

U.S. officials said the comments are an indirect warning to China, which has
fired a ground-based laser gun at a U.S. satellite that passed over its
territory -- an event viewed as one sign of Beijing's efforts to develop
space arms that can blind or destroy systems.

Mr. Joseph said yesterday that a number of nations are developing weapons to
"counter, attack and defeat U.S. space systems." He did not name the
countries. Asked after the speech about the Chinese laser incident, he
declined to comment.

"In view of these growing threats, our space policy requires us to increase
our ability to protect our critical space capabilities and to continue to
protect our interests from being harmed through the hostile use of space,"
he said.
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http://www.washingtontimes.com/funct...4-124040-1562r