Washington, Feb 15 (EFE).- The White House confirmed on Thursday that it is monitoring a new Russian anti-satellite weapon, calling it “troubling” but not an “immediate threat”, after the chairman of the US House Intelligence Committee, Republican Mike Turner, issued a cryptic statement on Wednesday about a “serious national security threat”.
“While I’m limited by how much I can share about the specific nature of the threat. I can confirm that it is related to an anti-satellite capability that Russia is developing,” said national security spokesman John Kirby.
Kirby did not clarify whether the threat was a nuclear weapon, as previously reported by US media, but said it was “space-based” and would be a violation of the 1967 Outer Space Treaty, which forbids the placement of nuclear weapons, or other weapons of mass destruction, in space.
“We are not talking about a weapon that can be used to attack human beings or cause physical destruction here on Earth. That said, we’ve been closely monitoring this Russian activity and we will continue to take it very seriously,” the spokesman said.
Kirby reiterated that the threat was “not an active capability” and had “not been deployed,” adding that “the intelligence community has serious concerns about a broad declassification of this intelligence” and that the White House agreed.
According to Kirby, President Joe Biden has been monitoring this threat closely and has directed that US allies around the world be informed and that there be contact with Russia to address this issue, although a direct line of communication with the Kremlin has not yet been established.
In addition, Biden has asked White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, his top foreign policy advisor, to meet with Democratic and Republican leaders in Congress on Thursday afternoon to discuss the latest intelligence on the matter.
In addition, the White House will brief the Senate when it reconvenes on Feb. 25, Kirby said.
On Wednesday, Turner issued a cryptic statement that caused a stir in Washington, announcing that the US faced a “serious national security threat” but not specifying its nature, and calling on Biden to declassify intelligence information about the threat so that the public could have access to it.
Shortly after Tuner’s announcement, the White House declined to provide further information; however, ABC television, citing two sources with knowledge of the situation, indicated that the threat was related to Russia’s intention to place nuclear weapons in space for the purpose of attacking satellites.
Satellites in space have become an important element of the war in Ukraine, with Ukrainian forces using SpaceX’s Starlink constellation to communicate and plan their actions on the battlefield. EFE
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