WASHINGTON, USA, Sept. 14, 2026 - US Air Force Secretary Troy Meink said on Sept 14 that the United States has 'space control' weapons deployed in Earth's orbit to defend US forces against 'hostile adversary action.'

Meink made the statement at the Air & Space Forces Association's annual conference, saying the US possesses on-orbit space control weapons capable of defending the joint force against hostile adversary action.

The disclosure drew backlash from Russia and China.

Impact Insight. Space control means the ability to protect one's own satellites and deny an opponent the use of theirs, and some past anti-satellite tests left debris that stayed in orbit for years. The link to planetary defense is near-Earth space safety rather than asteroids: conflict in orbit could create debris that endangers every satellite and strains the networks that track them.