IT IS Getting Dangerous Out There

7 Oct. 2006 > White House Space Policy Document

" (...) The new policy supports not only a Moon, Mars and beyond exploration agenda, but also responds to a post 9/11 world of terrorist actions, such as the need for intelligence-gathering internal and external to the United States.
(...)
“In this new century, those who effectively utilize space will enjoy added prosperity and security and will hold a substantial advantage over those who do not.”

Additionally, the Bush space policy is designed to “ensure that space capabilities are available in time to further U.S. national security, homeland security, and foreign policy objectives.”

Moreover, a fundamental goal of the policy is to “enable unhindered U.S. operations in and through space to defend our interests there.”
The policy calls upon the Secretary of Defense to “develop capabilities, plans, and options to ensure freedom of action in space, and, if directed, deny such freedom of action to adversaries.” (...)"

11 Jan. 2007 > China Test Sparks Space Arms fears

"Standing by the new space policy the White House issued last year, a U.S. State Department official said China’s Jan. 11 test of an anti-satellite weapon in space is not cause to open negotiations on a new treaty that would place limits on what countries can do in space.

“We do not think there is an arms race in space."
(...)
[The US State Dept.] official said the space policy clearly states that the United States will oppose the development of new legal regimes or other restrictions that seek to prohibit or limit U.S. access to, or use of, space and that no change in that policy is warranted.

“Arms control is not a viable solution for space. For example, there is no agreement on how to define space weapon. Without a definition you are left with loopholes and meaningless limitations that endanger national security. No arms control is better than bad arms control,” the State Department official said.

Gordon Johndroe, the National Security Council’s (NSC) chief spokesman, said in a statement provided by an NSC press official Jan. 18 that the Chinese used a ground-based, medium-range ballistic missile to knock out an aging Chinese weather satellite orbiting the Earth at an altitude of about 537 miles (865 kilometers).
(...)
The State Department official also said the United States received no advance notice from the Chinese. “We have expressed our concern to the Chinese and asked them to clarify their intentions in seeking to develop a ballistic-missile-based anti-satellite capability. ... The Chinese have not responded to our expressions of concern.”
(...)
“This is an enormous mess they [the Chinese] have created. There is no excuse for what is a reckless, stupid and self-defeating decision on their part,” Lewis said in a telephone interview Jan. 17.
[The Executive Director of Harvard’s Managing the Atom Project] Lewis said a U.S. Air Force database of objects in orbit showed the Chinese FY-11 weather satellite intact on Jan. 11, but that the data a day later “showed about 40 pieces of debris, which is probably just the tip of the iceberg.” Lewis said.
(...)
Arthur Ding, a research fellow at the National Chengchi University’s Institute of International Relations in Taiwan, said China’s motivation is likely rooted in their perception of the new U.S. space policy.
“The perception is that the U.S. is attempting to dominate space and the U.S. refuses any space-related arms control,” Ding said. “Further, China suspects that the U.S. is attempting to militarize space in the future.” A possible consequence is that space-related arms control is likely to be added to U.S.-China dialogue in the future,” he said. (...) "

Excerts via Space.com

Personal Addendum
It's Official: The Weaponization of Space is ON