Joint Chiefs chair: US troops must prepare for moon combat

U.S. troops must prepare for combat around the moon in addition to Earth’s orbit, according to Joint Chiefs of Staff Chair Gen. Dan Caine. Caine, President Trump’s top military adviser, said the U.S. military should make moves now so it “is prepared to fight, endure and win . . . from the seabed to cislunar space.”

Caine spoke Wednesday at the Air, Space and Cyber Conference.

A few days earlier, Air Force Secretary Troy Meink said at the same conference that the U.S. had launched a weapon into orbit to protect American troops. Meink did not elaborate on the type of weapon or when it was launched, but said it will “make sure that when we’re threatened, we can take care of that.”

The Washington Post reported the weapon could allow U.S. forces to take out an enemy’s satellite should it be used to target U.S. troops or a satellite.

Lt. Gen. Gregory Gagnon, head of the Space Force’s Combat Forces Command, told reporters separately that the Space Force is preparing for conflict outside Earth’s atmosphere and around the moon because, “humanity is advancing deeper into space,” according to The Associated Press.

“Our potential adversaries such as the [People’s Republic of China] are actively pursuing activities in the system, in parts of space,” Gagnon said.

He noted that Washington is looking to double the size of the Space Force over the next five years to roughly 25,000 service members.

“We have capabilities in the military because we are preparing to defend the nation,” Gagnon said, according to the AP. “The reason we have the capabilities is to help create deterrence.”