Militarization of space.. China accelerates launches and Washington heads toward the moon

The competition between the United States and China in space is escalating, with Beijing accelerating the development of reusable rockets and reducing the cost of reaching orbit, while the US military discourse expands to include cislunar space, a development that raises questions about the future of the peaceful use of space. This followed US Air Force Secretary Troy Meink's acknowledgment that the United States possesses weapons in space, reigniting debate over the 1967 Outer Space Treaty. This coincided with a call by US Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman General Dan Caine for US forces to prepare to fight, endure, and win "from the seabed to cislunar space." The article suggests that incorporating the lunar domain into US military planning shifts the competition from protecting satellites in Earth orbit to a broader area encompassing the region between Earth and the moon. In response, China is making progress in recoverable rockets, with LandSpace successfully vertically landing the Zhuque-3 rocket booster, and testing the recovery of part of the Long March 10B rocket via a maritime network. However, Beijing still faces a gap between rocket recovery and regular reuse. The article notes that the importance of reusable rockets extends beyond the technical aspect, given their role in reducing the cost of launching thousands of satellites needed for space internet and sensor networks. China's Guowang constellation plans to reach 12,992 satellites, while the Qianfan network targets over 15,000 satellites by 2030. On the US side, SpaceX has conducted over 600 missions using reusable boosters, with one Falcon 9 rocket reaching its 37th flight. Chinese reports warn that the ambiguity of space activities and the secrecy of some military capabilities may increase the likelihood of miscalculation and escalation.