The clandestine nature of the shuttle’s mission may have added a new dimension to the global arms race – a space war of sorts. Some think that the vehicle’s launch might be a grassroots stage the U.S. military is taking to eventually attack its foes while in space.
In response to public skepticism about the launch, officials in Washington have failed to come up with an explanation.
The Pentagon denies any claims that the U.S. is developing a space arsenal. “I don’t know how this could be called weaponization of space,” said Gary Payton, the Air Force deputy under secretary for space programs. “We, the Air Force, have a suite of military missions in space, and this new vehicle could potentially help us do those missions better,” Payton said.
Brian Weeden, the technical adviser for the Secure World Foundation, an organization dedicated to promoting the responsible use of space, agrees that the thought of this particular vehicle being used for combat is preposterous, but failed to deny that U.S. is seeking to develop efficient long range attack methods.
“The U.S. military is seeking to develop a conventional weapons capability known as Prompt Global Strike that can deliver munitions to anywhere on the Earth within an hour,” Weeden said.
Colonel Andre Lovett, a launch official and vice-commander of the Air Force’s 45th Space Wing, said the mission has at least some defense purposes.
“This launch helps ensure that our war-fighters will be provided the capabilities they need in the future,” said Lovett in a statement last Thursday.
If world leaders aren’t already outraged over the secretive nature of this military operation, they have every right to be; especially since President Barack Obama seems to be going out of his way to begin a global nuclear disarmament – a method, if proven entirely successful, will be an historic feat for U.S. foreign policy.
By: Brant
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