The United States has been engaged in military tests in outer space for more than 60 years. On Tuesday, November 16, Tatyana Kusayko, a member of the State Duma Defense Committee, told Izvestia.
The day before, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken accused Russia of testing anti-satellite systems, which contradicts Moscow's statements about the inadmissibility of placing weapons in outer space. According to him, by its actions, the Russian Federation threatens "the long-term sustainability of the space environment and the use of space by all countries."
"The United States itself has been engaged in military tests in space for more than 60 years. According to Roscosmos, currently the crew of the International Space Station is regularly performing work according to the flight program," she said.
At the same time, according to the deputy, the priority was and will be to ensure the unconditional safety of the ISS crew. In this regard, the Russian automated system for the prevention of dangerous situations in near-Earth outer space is constantly monitoring, the politician pointed out.
"I can understand the US Secretary of State [Anthony Blinken] - he needs to earn his bread and blame Russia for everything, of course, as the only country capable of equally withstanding a large-scale conflict with the United States," added Dmitry Belik, a member of the State Duma Committee on International Affairs.
Earlier that day, the Russian Defense Ministry reported on the successful conduct of a test, as a result of which the inactive Russian spacecraft "Tselina-D", which had been in orbit since 1982, was hit. At the same time, the ministry noted that the fragments formed during the tests and according to the parameters of the orbit did not and will not pose a threat to orbital stations, spacecraft and space activities.
The Ministry of Defense added that these fragments were included in the main catalog of the domestic space control system and immediately taken on escort until their existence ceased.
At the same time, the accusations of representatives of the State Department of allegedly creating risks for astronauts in the Russian military department were called hypocrisy.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov also pointed out that to claim that Russia is creating risks for the peaceful use of outer space is at least hypocrisy.
The Russian Foreign Minister also pointed out that the United States is actively developing an arms race in space. Thus, the Pentagon is testing orbital strike weapons, while ignoring the initiatives of the Russian Federation and China to prevent an arms race.