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US’s ambitious Space Force plan takes rivalry with China and Russia out of this world

Analysts say proposal to set up sixth branch of US military will accelerate space arms race, even though China’s technology still lags behind America’s

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China launches the Gaofen-11 satellite on a Long March 4B rocket from Taiyuan in Shanxi province on July 31. The country is said to have made progress in developing its space capabilities. Photo: Xinhua

A military rivalry between China and the United States is heating up and the battleground is space, with the two nations trying to boost their capabilities and Washington saying it will create a “Space Force” by 2020.

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Chinese analysts expect Washington’s ambitious plan announced on Thursday to fuel an accelerating space arms race between the two nations and Russia, even though China’s technology still lags behind America’s.

Outlining the basic structure of the Space Force, US Vice-President Mike Pence and Defence Secretary James Mattis said space was vital to the country’s national interests.

Stressing the need for a special space force, Pence said both China and Russia were actively looking for technologies that could interfere with or disable US space-based systems.

“Now the time has come to write the next great chapter in the history of our armed forces,” he said in a speech at the Pentagon.

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A US Space Command would be created as an interim step, to be led by a four-star officer and drawing forces from other armed services, he said.

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