China reports U.S. seeks to develop laser weapon against enemy satellites

WASHINGTON, May 3 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. government is seeking to develop a powerful ground-based laser weapon that will use beams of concentrated light to destroy enemy satellites in orbit, The New York Times reported Wednesday.

The largely secret project, parts of which have been made public through Air Force budget documents submitted to Congress in February, is part of a wide-ranging effort to develop space weapons, both defensive and offensive, according to the report.

The laser research is far more ambitious than a previous effort by the Bill Clinton administration nearly a decade ago to test an anti-satellite laser.

U.S. military officials defended the research as prudent, given the potential need for space arms to defend U.S. satellites against attack in the years ahead.

But some Congressional Democrats and other experts fault the research as potential fuel for an anti-satellite arms race that could ultimately hurt this nation more than others because the United States relies so heavily on military satellites, which aid navigation, reconnaissance and attack warning. Enditem

Source: Xinhua

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