OREANDA-NEWS. The Russian Ministry of Defense confirmed the US report on the testing of an anti-satellite missile by the Russian military. On November 15, «a test was successfully conducted, as a result of which the non-existent Russian spacecraft Tselina-D, which has been in orbit since 1982, was hit», the ministry said on Tuesday, November 16.

The statement stresses that the resulting fragments «did not and will not pose a threat to orbital stations, spacecraft and space activities». They are included in the catalog of the Russian space control system and will be accompanied until their existence ceases, the Ministry of Defense indicated.

The agency also noted that similar tests had previously been conducted by the United States, China and India, and accused the US State Department and the Pentagon of «hypocritical statements». Among other things, Moscow pointed to the adoption by the United States in 2020 of a new space strategy, one of the main goals of which is to «create a comprehensive military advantage in space».

On the eve of the American Space Forces Command (USSPACECOM), part of the US Air Force, announced that Russia was testing an anti-satellite direct interception missile (DA-ASAT) that hit the Soviet satellite Kosmos-1408 and created a debris field in low Earth orbit. «Russia has demonstrated a deliberate disregard for the safety, security, stability and long-term sustainability of outer space for all countries», said the head of the US Space Command, James Dickinson.

According to him, the debris generated as a result of the tests «will pose a threat to space activities for many years to come, putting satellites and space missions at risk, as well as forcing more collision avoidance maneuvers». According to the US Space Command, as a result, more than 1,500 fragments of tracked orbital debris were formed, which in the future may lead to the emergence of hundreds of thousands of smaller fragments.