China’s space forces are “moving at breathtaking speed” to enhance their ability to target the U.S. space assets and improve their own “terrestrial forces,” according to a top U.S. general.

“Frankly, the People’s Republic of China is moving at breathtaking speed in space, and they are rapidly developing a range of counterspace weapons to hold at risk our space capabilities,” Gen. Stephen Whiting told reporters Wednesday.

Whiting, in his first overseas trip as commander of U.S. Space Command, put a spotlight on Chinese capabilities at the outset of an itinerary that will take him to South Korea and Japan. His remarks underscore the widespread U.S. suspicion that China’s various space programs represent the cutting edge of a worsening military threat.

“We believe that a lot of their so-called civilian space program is a military program,” NASA Administrator Bill Nelson told a House appropriations panel last week. “And I think, in effect, we are in a race.”

Nelson noted that China is “very, very secretive” about its space operations. Whiting made the same observation while acknowledging a misgiving that “China’s ambitions to go to the moon” could lead to a lunar military force.

“We’ve seen the announcements of China’s ambitions to go to the moon, and you know, those appear to be exploratory and scientific on the surface,” Whiting said. “But the Chinese aren’t very transparent with what they do in space. And so, you know, we hope there’s not a military component to that. But we would certainly welcome more transparency.”

Chinese General Secretary Xi Jinping presided over a reorganization of the People’s Liberation Army last week, launching a new “Information Support Force” which he said “bears a great responsibility for advancing the military’s high level of development and winning a modern war.” That force is tasked with effectively replacing the Strategic Support Force, which commanded the PLA’s space forces, as SpaceNews observed. The reorganization also underscores the role of information in China’s concept of competition with the United States.

“In modern warfare, victory hinges on information,” a PLA Daily commentary emphasized, according to Channel News Asia. “The struggle is between systems, and whoever commands information superiority holds the initiative in war.” 

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China has “tripled the number of intelligence surveillance and reconnaissance satellites in orbit,” according to Whiting. Their expanding space capabilities could have a number of ramifications for warfare on the globe.

“They’re also using space to make their terrestrial forces — their army, their navy, the marine corps, their air force — more precise, more lethal, and more far-ranging,” Whiting said. “And so that obviously is a cause for concern and something that we are watching very, very closely.”