Former US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, who previously served as the Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), commented on new American intelligence regarding Russian military capabilities related to its efforts to deploy a nuclear anti-satellite system in space. In an interview with CNN, Panetta stated, "I have been following these reports since I was Secretary of Defense and CIA Director, and we were concerned about China and its ability to use laser beams that could destabilize or knock down satellites."
He added, "This recent report pertains to the potential of nuclear weapons in space, which is a military capability, and using these nuclear weapons in space to either disrupt satellites or bring them down. The issue is that we rely on satellites for communication, intelligence purposes, GPS, and more, meaning this is related to our national security."
Panetta went on to emphasize, "If Russia is capable of negating our abilities by obtaining this information, make no mistake, this would be an act of war because it would threaten our national security."
According to three American officials familiar with the intelligence, the system is still under development and has not yet been launched into space. One of the officials stated, "It is unclear how advanced the technology used in its operation is." Another official told CNN that "the threat does not involve a weapon that can be used to attack humans." It has not been immediately clarified whether the information pertains to a nuclear-powered anti-satellite system or provides nuclear strike capabilities. Notably, ABC News was the first to report on this intelligence information.
