FPI / June 20, 2025

Geostrategy-Direct

By Richard Fisher

New Chinese threats are gathering in Low Earth Orbit (LEO).

First China is about to commence refueling between two satellites in LEO; and second, China is considering “arming” its Space Station with small satellites that can intercept other satellites that approach too close to the Space Station.

A 2023 Chinese image of its Tiangong Space Station docked to a future Space Telescope that could also be used for Earth surveillance, but arming it with interceptor satellites would turn this space station into a weapons platform. / Chinese internet

On June 9 the space situational monitoring company COMSPOC reported on the Geosynchronous Orbit (GEO) maneuvers of China’s Shijian-25 (Experiment-25) between June 6 and June 7, as it approached Shijian-21 for a possible satellite-to-satellite refueling maneuver.

But COMSPOC also reported on a possible space observation mission by the United States, in that U.S. space situational awareness (SSA) satellites USA 271 and USA 270 had maneuvered into positions for favorable viewing of the maneuvers by the Chinese satellites.

Launched a bit over a year ago on June 1, 2024, Shijian-25 is thought to be equipped with grappling arms, like Shijian-21 launched in October 2021, that in January 2022 moved a non-operational Beidou navigation satellite from GEO.

On June 13, U.S.-based reporter Ling Xin of the South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported that this maneuver used up SJ-21’s fuel and made necessary the satellite-to-satellite refueling mission.

However, the U.S. move to send two SSA satellites to observe the Chinese refueling maneuver indicates that the U.S. is also concerned about the “dual use” or space combat potential of these two Chinese Shijian satellites.

China’s People’s Liberation Army Aerospace Force (PLA-AF) that controls these Shijian satellites and all other aspects of China’s space program, has already developed ground-based laser and ground-launched missiles to conduct anti-satellite (ASAT) missions, and the Shijian satellites are another potential ASAT weapon that can perform “co-orbital” or in-space interceptions.

Once China fulfills its ambition to build very large space planes similar to the former U.S. Space Shuttle, these Shijian satellite could even capture target satellites for return to Earth on reusable space shuttle like spaceships.

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  refueling satellites, U.S. monitors space combat potential of China’s space station, WorldTribune.com