Chinese deny participation in outer space arms race


dpa German Press Agency
Published: Friday January 19, 2007

Beijing- The Chinese foreign minister Friday has denied any change in the country's policy of the "peaceful use of outer space" in response to reports of the launch of China's first ever anti- satellite missile in space. A foreign ministry spokesman, Liu Jianchao, told reporters Friday at a New Year's reception that the ministry "had not been informed" of the military action.

China launched its first ever anti-satellite missile to destroy an ageing weather satellite in space, a Chinese civil service official confirmed to Deutsche-Presse Agentur dpa on Friday.

A high-level Chinese official said the Chinese "had not participated in an arms race in outer space and would never" do so in future.

Another Chinese official confirmed to dpa that the foreign ministry had not been informed of the measure.

"We don't know what's going on," he said.

The missile test, the first of its kind by any nation in two decades, was reportedly conducted on January 12 and has prompted strong criticism from Japan and the US, where media reports first revealed the test on Thursday.

The White House later confirmed the reports and said it had filed a formal complaint with China, while Canada and Australia have also protested.

"We are concerned about it, and we've made it known," White House spokesman Tony Snow said.

The test that destroyed the Fengyun-1C weather satellite, 850 kilometres distant, was carried out from a launching pad in Xichang in Sichuan province, a civil service official at the launch site told

© 2006 dpa German Press Agency