Bush takes aim at U.S. Satellite.

[Alinestra Covelia]

Originally posted by Kuciwalker
We did it 23 years ago. Like usual, the Chinese were decades late.

And as usual, when the Chinese did something that the Americans have already done ages ago, the Americans react with surprise, hostility, and sinister boos and hisses from the wings.

• Man in space
• Shoot down satellite
• Testing nuclear weapon
• Release "special editions" of DVDs out in US cinemas
• Building large dams for hydroelectric power
• Capitalism, with the income gaps that entails
• Large outlays of government spending on military
• Beauty pageants for women with plastic surgery
• Hosting the Olympics

I'm sure "broadcasting Teletubbies" is on that list somewhere but I'm not sure how to fit it in.

[Gatekeeper]

JulianD:

The Wikipedia link you provided is correct WRT the U.S. test/use of an anti-satellite weapon in 1984/1985. I found that out after digging through some newspaper archives after making my initial post to this thread.

My thoughts WRT China still stand, though (i.e., the latest shoot-down attempt is a transparent attempt to show the world that China isn't the only nation with anti-satellite capabilities).

Gatekeeper

[DaShi]

China's response:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/19/world/asia/19china.html?pagewanted=print

February 19, 2008
China Expresses Concern on U.S. Plan to Shoot Down Satellite
By DAVID LAGUE
BEIJING — In response to a United States plan to shoot down a malfunctioning spy satellite, China has warned against threats to security in outer space, without mentioning its own successful anti-satellite missile test last year.

The Chinese government also stopped short of linking the planned American strike with Beijing’s repeated calls for a complete ban on space weapons.

A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman, Liu Jianchao, said the Chinese government was concerned about the American plan, Xinhua, the state-run news agency, reported late Sunday, noting that the target satellite was loaded with toxic fuel.

Mr. Liu also urged Washington to fulfill its international obligations and avoid threatening security in space and the security of other countries, Xinhua quoted him as saying, without elaborating.

“Relevant departments of China are closely watching the situation and working out preventative measures,” Mr. Liu said.

Security analysts have suggested that Beijing could use the planned American interception to justify the Chinese military’s unannounced destruction of a defunct weather satellite in January 2007.

That interception drew criticism from senior American military officials, who complained that it had left a cloud of debris that was dangerous to other space traffic. Chinese experts in turn have questioned the Pentagon’s explanation that it wants to destroy the spy satellite before it tumbles to Earth to avoid contamination from hazardous fuel on board.

“In my opinion, this decision is imprudent and ill advised,” said Li Bin, an arms control specialist at Tsinghua University in Beijing. “If this satellite is shot down, the toxic fuel will still be there. Therefore, the pollution still exists.”

But, Mr. Li said, destroying the satellite would be an effective way to prevent its technology from falling into the wrong hands.

Just days after China and Russia renewed their call for a global ban on space weapons at a disarmament conference, the United States announced late last week that it was preparing to fire a missile at the crippled reconnaissance satellite by the middle of next week during one of its passes over the Pacific.

The United States opposes treaties or other measures to restrict space weapons.

In what will be a challenging test of antiballistic missile technology, the interceptor will be fired from an American warship just before the satellite is expected to plunge uncontrollably back to earth.

The Pentagon said President Bush had ordered the mission to prevent possible contamination of inhabited areas. It said the interception was not a weapons test or a demonstration for potential adversaries.

Yuan Xi contributed reporting.

[Alinestra Covelia]

Yes, refreshing to know that both governments are in the same "business of hypocrisy", as Michael Corleone might say.