Top Trump military adviser says US must prepare to fight around moon

Gen Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, has warned that the United States military must prepare to fight not only on Earth's orbit but also around the moon. This comes after the US revealed it has deployed weapons in space, marking a new frontier in warfare. Gen Caine addressed service members and industry figures at the Air, Space and Cyber Conference outside Washington, emphasizing the need for the US military to adapt and be prepared to "fight, endure and win from the seabed to cislunar space."

Lt Gen Gregory Gagnon, head of the Space Force's Combat Forces Command, told reporters that the Space Force is preparing to fight in space and around the moon because "humanity is advancing deeper into space – the Space Force's job is to help be prepared to defend US interests." The announcement of the US military's readiness to fight in this new frontier follows recent days of other military officials revealing space weaponry, seemingly contradicting longstanding conventions that have held outer space as non-militarized.

The Space Force has claimed that potential adversaries may seek to turn space into a battleground, citing intelligence reports that China has been actively pursuing activities in space. In response to China's deployment of its own military space troops, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun stated that China "upholds the peaceful use of outer space" and opposes the weaponization, militarization, and arms race in outer space.

The legality of deploying weapons in space or plans to use them around the moon remains uncertain, as the Outer Space Treaty of 1967 prohibits the militarization of space and requires countries to bear responsibility for damage caused by their space objects.