By Sarah Cope | 2025-11-19

Top US military officials are sounding the alarm on the rapid expansion of China’s space-military capabilities as the space domain becomes more congested and competitive, warning of the emerging orbital "kill chain."

At the Air & Space Forces Association conference in September, US Space Forces–Space commander Lt Gen. Douglas Schiess said China remains the country's number one threat in space.

Speaking at the conference, both Schiess and Brig. Gen. Brian Sidari, a senior intelligence official at US Space Command, expressed concern at the rapid pace of China's satellite deployment and capability introduction.

As of July, China had over 1,189 satellites in orbit, with more than 500 of those capable of intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR), according to USSF's latest Space Threat Fact Sheet.

This is an increase of orbiting satellites by about 927% since 2015.

Schiess said the People's Liberation Army is constructing a sophisticated "kill chain," DigiTimes Asia reported October 1.

A "kill chain" is the sequence of steps used to find and destroy targets. The US Air Force breaks the kill chain down into six discrete steps: find, fix, track, target, engage and assess, according to Air and Space Magazine.

Kill chains can be offensive or defensive, and make use of land, sea, air and space assets.

An "orbital kill chain" describes the sequence of steps needed to find, target and destroy an enemy asset using space-based assets like satellites, per SPA.

By extending surveillance and strike ranges through space-based assets, Schiess said, Beijing is gaining unprecedented capabilities to detect, track and potentially destroy US forces and to place US space infrastructure at risk.

Military and space threat

Former US Space Forces chief of space operations Gen. John Raymond frequently highlighted the threat China’s advancing capabilities could present to US forces amid the rapid pace of change in the space domain.

Speaking at an Atlantic Council event in May, Raymond cautioned that China is catching up in the race to integrate space capabilities with the rest of its military.

"If you look at what China has built, they now have a very capable space-enabled military that can threaten our traditional joint warfighting partners," he warned. "We have to have the ability to protect those forces."

Regardless of China’s advancements, he said, the United States is still "the best of the world in space, especially with our allies and partners at our side."

China’s arsenal of counter-space capabilities spans direct-ascent anti-satellite missiles, co-orbital maneuvering satellites, satellites armed with electronic warfare or directed-energy payloads, and a growing launch capacity.

US officials warn that China is laying the groundwork to deny key space functions, such as GPS-enabled communications or navigation, to US military forces in potential future armed conflicts.

In response, the United States is taking a multifaceted approach, hardening its space assets, deepening its partnerships and private sector cooperation, and keeping tabs on China’s dual use capabilities and increasing orbital footprint.

US intelligence chiefs also have flagged China as the largest military and space threat to the United States.

The intelligence community’s annual threat assessment noted China’s ability to strike US assets in space, strike conventional targets, and compromise infrastructure via cyber attacks.