America Must Be Prepared For ‘The Fight For Space,’ Navy Vice Admiral Says

America has always been on the forefront of all major international space exploration programs. It has been acclaimed as the undisputed leader of global space research. Recently, countries like Russia and China have started making unprecedented progress in space research and exploration. 

Due to the increased space presence of these countries, American supremacy is likely to be threatened. According to Navy Vice Admiral Charles A. Richard, who also happens to be deputy commander of the U.S. Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM), should adopt the "preparation without provocation" to maintain its position as a leader and send the same message to all other nations that are or will participate in space explorations in the future. Vice Admiral Richard proposed this at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) conference that was recently held in Washington, D.C., Futurism reported.

"I submit [that] the best way to prevent war is to be prepared for war," Vice Admiral Richard said. Also, in his talk, he further explained that just as possessing nuclear assets convinces potential opponents that an attack will be in vain, the U.S. should try and maintain similar status quo in the space as well. This is imperative for the safety and maintenance of American assets and future establishments on moons and exoplanets.

According to Space.com, adopting such a defensive strategy is highly required, especially after the confirmed reports of China and Russia developing "anti-satellite (ASAT) technologies." Though the current international space scenario cannot be categorized as war, on the flip side, it cannot be considered as a perfectly "benign."

Apart from protecting its own assets, space supremacy can also enable the U.S. in acting against bad space behavior, like when the Chinese ASAT test in 2007 created 3,400 new space debris. One has already hit an orbiting Russian satellite and caused noticeable damage to it. Vice Admiral Richard emphasized that the goal of USSTRATCOM is to keep the space safe and accessible. Also, as a global leader, the U.S. should start taking measures toward it.