Second, China has developed the means to attack some US satellites, and there is no guarantee that China does not ultimately seek to develop a robust space weapons program. China's ASAT test demonstrates that the Chinese have been working assiduously at developing their space weapons program. Although China made a decision in the early 1990s to focus its space resources on civilian programs, an annual official budget of $2.5 billion for space programs and a growing number of dual-use technology programs suggest that China's military space capacity is growing. For instance, China has long conducted research on the development of beam weapons that can be incorporated into ASAT weapons systems. China is known to have tested high-power microwave weapons for jamming satellite communication. If China is indeed pursuing a full-blown space weapons program, a space arms race may be inevitable despite a US decision not to launch the first space weapons program.

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Blazejewski, Kenneth S. "Space Weaponization and US-China Relations." Strategic Studies Quarterly. Vol. 2, No. 1 (Spring 2008): 33-55. [ 12 quotes ] [ page 41 ]