White House: Space assets will be defended

WASHINGTON, Dec. 17 (UPI) -- Wars on land may expand to attacks on space-based technology, U.S. officials said, and the United States must be able to protect its equipment.

Remarks by Undersecretary of State Robert Joseph indicated the administration would react with force to interference with U.S. space technology, the Washington Post said Sunday.

"We reserve the right to defend ourselves against hostile attacks and interference with our space assets," Joseph said.

The Bush administration maintains there is no space arms race, although the United States was the lone dissent in a recent United Nations call for talks on keeping weapons out of space.

Some Democrats and other officials expressed concern about the White House's comments and possible plans regarding space defense. Loren Dealy, Democratic spokeswoman for the House Armed Services Committee, said Joseph's speech "left a lot of room for weaponization of space, which is something that our members have been very concerned about for a while."

The George C. Marshall Institute, a nonprofit group that specializes in technical aspects of defense, said Joseph's remarks highlighted a growing U.S. vulnerability that needs to be addressed.