The United States has briefed Congress and its allies in Europe about Russian progress on
a new space nuclear weapon
designed to threaten America's extensive satellite network, according to current and former officials briefed on the matter.
If such a weapon were deployed to
kill satellites
, it could
destroy civilian communications
, space-based surveillance, and
military command
and control operations by the United States and its allies.
At the moment, the United States
does not have the capacity to counter such a weapon
and defend its satellites, a former official said.
The officials said the new intelligence, which they did not describe in detail, raised serious questions about whether Russia was preparing to
abandon the 1967 Outer Space Treaty
, which
bans all orbital nuclear weapons
.
But because Russia does not appear close to deploying the weapon, they said, it is not considered an urgent threat.
The intelligence was made public, in part, in a cryptic announcement Wednesday by Rep. Michael R. Turner, R-Ohio, chairman of the House Intelligence Committee.
He asked the Biden administration to
declassify the information
without specifically saying what it was about.
ABC News previously reported that the intelligence had to do with Russian space-based anti-satellite nuclear weapons.
Current and former officials said the launch of the anti-satellite
did not appear imminent
, but that there was a limited period of time, which they did not define, to prevent its deployment.
A concern from 50 years ago
Concerns about placing nuclear weapons in space
date back 50 years
.
The United States experimented with versions of the technology but
never implemented them
.
Russia has been developing its space capabilities for decades.
U.S. military officials have warned that
both Russia and China are moving toward greater space militarization
, as the three superpowers work on ways to blind each other.
Representative Michael Turner (R-Ohio), Chairman of the House Intelligence Committee Photo: Haiyun Jiang/The New York Times
A report published last year highlighted Russia's development of weapons to blind other satellites, but noted that Russia had refrained from using the full range of anti-satellite capabilities it had developed.
Deploying a nuclear weapon in space would be a significant advance in Russian technology and
a potentially dramatic escalation
.
The Outer Space Treaty bans nuclear weapons in space, but Russia
has pulled out of many Cold War arms control treaties,
seeing them as a restriction on its most important source of military power.
Uproar in Washington
Turner's statement and his decision to share the information with others in Congress
caused an uproar in Washington
on Wednesday over what the intelligence was.
But the statement
infuriated White House officials
, who feared the loss of important sources of information about Russia.
While Turner has been a White House ally on aid to Ukraine, his comments Wednesday became the
latest flashpoint in strained relations between the Biden administration and congressional Republicans.
The intelligence developed in recent days and, while important, officials said it was not some kind of break-the-glass warning about an imminent threat.
But Turner urged his release.
“I request that President Biden declassify all information related to this threat so that Congress, the administration, and our allies
can openly discuss the actions necessary
to respond to this threat,” Turner said.
House Homeland Security Coordinator Jake Sullivan answers questions.
Photo: Tom Brenner/The New York Times
His committee took the unorthodox step of voting Monday to make the information available to all members of Congress, a move that alarmed some officials because it is unclear
in what context,
if any, the intelligence was presented. in possession of the panel.
In a memo to lawmakers, the House Intelligence Committee said the intelligence was about a “destabilizing foreign military capability.”
Capitol Hill is mired in
a bitter political showdown
over whether the United States should mobilize resources to counter Russian threats to Ukraine, a cause that most Democrats and some Republicans (including Turner) have argued is essential to protecting security interests. United States national.
But a majority of Republican House members, including Speaker Mike Johnson, reject calls for a House vote on the Senate-approved $60.1 billion foreign aid package for Ukraine.
Former President Donald Trump has incited Republican opposition, saying over the weekend that
he would encourage Russia to “do whatever it wants” to any NATO country
that has not spent enough money on its own defense.
Other officials said Turner was exploiting the new intelligence more than would normally have been expected, perhaps
to create pressure
to prompt the House to
accept the request for supplemental funding for Ukraine
that the Senate approved this week.
That measure, which provides military aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, faces an uncertain outlook in the House.
While many Republicans oppose additional funding,
Turner is a strong advocate for greater assistance to Ukraine
and recently visited Kiev, the capital.
Shortly after Turner's announcement,
Jake Sullivan, the national security adviser,
entered the White House briefing room to discuss the importance of continuing funding Ukraine's military.
But Sullivan declined to answer a reporter's question about the content of Turner's announcement, saying only that he planned to meet with Turner on Thursday.
“We scheduled a briefing for members of the House Gang of Eight tomorrow,” Sullivan said, referring to a group of congressional leaders from both parties.
“That's been in the books.
"So I'm a little surprised that Congressman Turner came out publicly, ahead of a scheduled meeting, so that tomorrow I can sit down with him alongside our intelligence and defense professionals."
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