Latest news with #Saltzman
Epoch Times
2 days ago
- Politics
- Epoch Times
Hegseth Heads to Singapore to Underscore US Commitment to Indo–Pacific
U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth set off to Singapore on May 28 for a series of meetings that he said would 'ensure that [the] region understands America will be strong.' 'We seek no conflict with anybody, including the communist Chinese, but we will deter that,' he said at the Joint Base Andrews in Maryland before departure. 'We will stand strong for our interests. And that's a big part of what this trip is all about.' The defense secretary will attend the annual Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore on May 31, where he will meet with Prime Minister Lawrence Wong and other officials, as well as several defense ministers from Southeast Asian nations, according to a May 27 Hegseth, in an Allies In recent months, U.S. defense experts and officials have called for stronger U.S. partnerships in the Indo–Pacific to counter the Chinese regime's growing influence. During a congressional Related Stories 5/20/2025 4/22/2025 Navy Adm. Samuel Paparo, commander of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, said at the hearing that the Chinese military had achieved 'unprecedented' modernization with respect to weapons and capabilities, posing 'a real and serious threat to our homeland, to our allies and to our partners.' At a separate congressional hearing on May 15, retired Gen. Charles Flynn, who served as the commanding general of U.S. Army Pacific, echoed Paparo and said the Chinese military of today is 'dramatically different' from when he served. 'Are they rehearsing? Are they preparing? Absolutely,' Flynn 'This is not just a U.S. problem. This has to be a Taiwan problem, a Japanese problem, a Philippine problem,' he said. 'It's got to be the entire first island chain, to include South Korea.' Former Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell said at the May hearing that the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia (AUKUS) partnership affords an undersea advantage that is 'still 10, 15, 20 years ahead of Beijing,' emphasizing the importance of cementing regional ties. Advancements Gen. Chance Saltzman, chief of space operations for the U.S. Space Force, said that the Chinese military has made strides in space capabilities over the Indo–Pacific, enough to become a 'powerful, destabilizing force.' Saltzman China is also practicing 'dogfighting in space,' Saltzman said, saying his service has seen Chinese experimental satellites conducting 'unusual, large, and rapid maneuvers' in geostationary orbit in recent years. Based on the observation, Saltzman said Beijing 'is resolved to contest [U.S.] spacepower through combat operations.' The Chinese military has also drilled with its most advanced long-range H-6 bombers in the region. Satellite images showed H-6 bombers flying over the disputed Scarborough Shoal ahead of Hegseth's visit to the Philippines in March, and showed two H-6 bombers landing on the disputed Paracel Islands on May 19. Frank Fang and Reuters contributed to this report.
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
The Trump Administration Is Gutting the Space Force
The Trump administration has slashed the US Space Force's workforce by almost 14 percent, a dramatic cut that could have an enormous impact on the smallest and youngest branch of the US Armed Forces. As Defense One reports, early retirement and voluntary-resignation programs, both widely used tactics by the newly-minted Trump administration to slash government budgets, are having an "outsized impact" on the Space Force. According to chief of space operations general Chance Saltzman, 14 percent, or roughly 780 civilians, are affected. That's considerably higher than the ten percent that officials had warned would be cut earlier this month. It's a troubling development that could directly undermine the Pentagon's mission to secure the United States' interests in space. During a Senate Armed Services committee hearing this week, Saltzman warned that the Space Force could leave the nation's efforts to protect its assets in orbit woefully behind schedule, allowing adversaries to gain the upper hand. Meanwhile, the Department of Defense is also heavily affected and is expected to lose five to eight percent of its civilian workforce. "I'm worried about replacing that level of expertise in the near term as we try to resolve it and make sure we have a good workforce doing that acquisition," Saltzman said. And even more Space Force staffers could soon walk, taking deferred-resignation offers. "The DOD is really looking at what the size of the civilian workforce is, and so if those incentives to reshape the workforce affect the Space Force, I'm not sure exactly where we're going to end up, what our final size is going to be," Saltzman said. "As soon as I understand what that size is, then we will redistribute, and reallocate this for." The cuts came at an extremely unfortunate time for the Space Force. "We were in a period of managed growth, and so there was a deficit when we were trying to get to a larger civilian workforce, and we were asked to stop, and then asked to offer some to resign early," Saltzman said at the committee hearing. Beyond early retirements and voluntary resignations, the Space Force was already planning to cut its workforce by as much as eight percent, according to an announcement earlier this year. Where the cuts leave the Space Force's efforts to gain the upper hand in the space domain remains to be seen. Officials have long warned of adversaries, including Russia and China, that are developing space-based weapons and potentially leaving the US behind. "We are not adequately funded for the new missions that I've been given in space superiority," Saltzman said. Despite all of these cuts, the White House announced that it would build an enormous, potentially half-a-trillion-dollar "Golden Dome" missile and air defense shield, indicating that its priorities may simply lie elsewhere. More on the Space Force: The Space Force Is Working on an Aircraft Carrier for Space
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
US space chief warns China, Russia are greatest risks to space defense capabilities
Chief of Space Operations Gen. B. Chance Saltzman warned Chinese and Russian technologies, especially Beijing's ''kill web,' present the greatest risks to the U.S.'s space defense capabilities. 'The PRC [People's Republic of China] has developed what we've kind of, you know, tongue in cheek, called a 'kill web,' and it's nothing more than a series of hundreds of satellites that are a sensor network that provide real-time updates, targeting quality information of our force,' Saltzman said at Politico's Security Summit on Thursday. This 'kill web' presents new risks to U.S. forces due to its precise targeting, which can infiltrate forces in range before they can begin to meet military objectives, Saltzman said. 'This is a huge problem. And the Indo-Pacific is where we see this most acutely,' Saltzman said, adding, 'That's why we have to build our capabilities to try to disrupt that so that when we're trying to achieve military objectives, our soldiers, sailors and airmen are safe and not under this umbrella of a very accurate, very long range set of weapons.' China's space program has significantly increased in recent years and hopes to put astronauts on the moon before 2030. China was excluded from the International Space amid national security concerns, prompting the Asia nation to build its own space station. Saltzman warned the PRC has shown an 'accelerated ability' to launch payloads like spacecraft or satellites into orbit. The U.S. space chief then laid out three areas of concern he has over Russia's capabilities. Months ahead of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Russia demonstrated a 'kinetic kill capability,' which is an anti-satellite missile to destroy a satellite. This invasion, Saltzman said, involved a cyberattack against global communications company Viasat in the ground network. 'We have to remember space capabilities can be negated using ground techniques…cyber techniques,' he said. 'So we have to defend our assets in not just the orbit, but the ground as well.' Saltzman's third concern related to Russia's jamming efforts and its aim to put a nuclear weapon on orbit. 'The Russians are demonstrating reckless aggressive behaviors with regards to how they intend to contest the space domain that will have far-reaching impacts beyond any localized military effect,' Saltzman said. It comes as Russia and China pursue a joint initiative to establish an international lunar research station. The Associated Press contributed. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Hill
15-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hill
US space chief warns China, Russia are greatest risks to space defense capabilities
Chief of Space Operations Gen. B Chance Saltzman warned Chinese and Russian technologies, especially Beijing's ''kill web,' present the greatest risks to the U.S.'s space defense capabilities. 'The PRC [People's Republic of China] has developed what we've kind of, you know, tongue in cheek, called a 'kill web,' and it's nothing more than a series of hundreds of satellites that are a sensor network that provide real-time updates, targeting quality information of our force,' Saltzman said at Politico's Security Summit on Thursday. This 'kill web' presents new risks to U.S. forces due to its precise targeting, which can infiltrate forces in range before they can begin to meet military objectives, Saltzman said. 'This is a huge problem. And the Indo-Pacific is where we see this most acutely,' Saltzman said, adding, 'That's why we have to build our capabilities to try to disrupt that so that when we're trying to achieve military objectives, our soldiers, sailors and airmen are safe and not under this umbrella of a very accurate, very long range set of weapons.' China's space program has significantly increased in recent years and hopes to put astronauts on the moon before 2030. China was excluded from the International Space amid national security concerns, prompting the Asia nation to build its own space station. Saltzman warned the PRC has shown an 'accelerated ability' to launch payloads like spacecraft or satellites into orbit. The U.S. space chief then laid out three areas of concern he has over Russia's capabilities. Months ahead of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Russia demonstrated a 'kinetic kill capability,' which is an anti-satellite missile to destroy a satellite. This invasion, Saltzman said, involved a cyber attack against global communications company Viasat in the ground network. 'We have to remember space capabilities can be negated using ground techniques…cyber techniques,' he said. 'So we have to defend our assets in not just the orbit, but the ground as well.' Saltzman's third concern related to Russia's jamming efforts and its aim to put a nuclear weapon on orbit. 'The Russians are demonstrating reckless aggressive behaviors with regards to how they intend to contest the space domain that will have far-reaching impacts beyond any localized military effect,' Saltzman said. It comes as Russia and China pursue a joint initiative to establish an international lunar research station. The Associated Press contributed.
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
US space chief warns of emerging threats from China and Russia
Surging technologies spearheaded by Chinese and Russian forces represent the greatest threat in space defense, Chief of Space Operations Gen. B. Chance Saltzman said Thursday at the POLITICO Security Summit. 'The PRC has developed what we've kind of, you know, tongue in cheek, called a 'kill web,' and it's nothing more than a series of hundreds of satellites that are a sensor network that provide real-time updates, targeting quality information of our force,' Saltzman said, warning that the strategy represents the biggest threat in U.S. adversaries' growing space capabilities. Saltzman emphasized the need to bolster U.S. capacity to disrupt the satellite network, saying it most acutely affects the Indo Pacific region. But China's kill web isn't the only area of concern for the space chief. Saltzman also noted Beijing's 'accelerated ability to put capacity on orbit,' adding that Russia, another major U.S. adversary, is similarly demonstrating strength in that arena. Russia, which is partnering with China to launch a joint lunar exploration project dubbed the International Lunar Research Station, also poses major threats to U.S. space defense, Saltzman said. 'The Russians are demonstrating reckless aggressive behaviors with regards to how they intend to contest the space domain that will have far-reaching impacts beyond any localized military effect,' Saltzman said, outlining three major areas of concern in Russian space technology development. Russia's demonstrated kinetic kill capability, which saw it destroying a satellite and generating massive amounts of orbital debris in 2021 before launching its invasion into Ukraine; its cyber attack against Viasat the day it began its Ukrainian incursion and continued jamming efforts; and its ambition of putting a nuclear weapon on orbit all pose significant threats to security, the space chief said. Saltzman's warnings come as the two U.S. adversaries ramp up their efforts to expand their space capabilities. Just last week, Beijing and the Kremlin signed a deal to build a joint nuclear power plant on the moon to power their planned International Lunar Research Station. The project aims to create a permanent base on the moon by the mid-2030s, in competition with the U.S.-led Artemis moon mission.
