Secretary of the Air Force Troy Meink announced Monday that the U.S. Space Force has deployed on-orbit space control weapons, marking the first time a Pentagon official has publicly confirmed the existence of U.S. space-based weapons. Meink made the statement during his keynote address at the Air & Space Forces Association’s 2026 Air, Space & Cyber Conference in National Harbor, Maryland.
“Today, we continue to ensure we remain ready to meet the challenges of evolving threats, wherever they exist. This is why the United States now has on-orbit space control weapons capable of defending the joint force against hostile adversary action,” Meink said.
Meink did not specify the type of weapons, how many are in orbit, or when they were launched. Asked whether he could elaborate, he said, “That phrase was very well thought out. So whatever I said before is what I say again.” At a media roundtable following the keynote, he declined to comment on the type of weapons or why the announcement was made now.
“It is important from a deterrence perspective, but on the other hand, me talking about the details of what we’re doing would actually not benefit that deterrence,” Meink said. “So I’m not going to talk about the specifics of what we’re doing, whether we’ve tested or not tested, or anything else.”
A Space Force spokesperson confirmed the deployment in a statement to The War Zone, saying, “It is longstanding policy that the U.S. will protect and defend the Joint Force through all domains. We are increasing readiness against existing threats, and the U.S. has on-orbit space control weapons capable of defending the Joint Force against hostile adversary action.”
The spokesperson described space control as “the mission areas required to contest and control the space domain – employing kinetic and non-kinetic means to affect adversary capabilities through disruption, degradation and even destruction, if necessary.” The spokesperson added that these capabilities “can be employed for offensive and defensive purposes at the direction of combatant commands” and that U.S. military operations are conducted in compliance with international law, including the Outer Space Treaty and the Law of Armed Conflict.
The Outer Space Treaty, which came into force in 1967, prohibits the United States and other signatories from placing nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction in orbit, but does not limit conventional weaponry. The spokesperson declined to discuss “specific operational methods, payloads, technical characteristics, or employment concepts.”
Meink said the U.S. has been aware for more than a decade that adversaries such as China and Russia were developing capabilities to threaten U.S. systems. “We need to maintain dominance in space as it becomes more and more important to how we function, how we operate militarily and economically, civilian-wise,” he said.
The Space Force’s warfighting framework, published in 2025, outlines interest in both kinetic and non-kinetic offensive weapons, including orbital strike and space link interdiction operations. Orbital strike includes actions that “destroy, disrupt or degrade adversary space platforms in the space domain” through kinetic or non-kinetic effects, according to the framework.
Sources: Air & Space Forces Magazine · DefenseScoop · Defense News · The War Zone