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By the late 2020s, China could threaten satellites with weapons mounted in space itself. That is the warning in a new report from the US Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), the third edition of its "Challenges to Security in Space" series, released on October 26 with intelligence current to July 2026. According to reports from the South China Morning Post and Air and Space Forces Magazine, it is the first time the agency has given a potential timeline for Chinese space-based directed-energy we
apons — and the details matter, because this is a projection, not a confirmation that such weapons exist.
What a directed-energy weapon actually does
Directed-energy weapons focus electromagnetic energy — lasers or high-power microwaves — onto a target instead of hitting it with a projectile. At lower power, a laser can "dazzle" a satellite's optical sensors, temporarily blinding it; at higher power, it can damage sensitive components, while microwaves can disrupt electronics. The DIA says the People's Liberation Army probably considers such weapons "ideal counterspace systems" precisely because they can cause both reversible and nonreversible effects: a dazzled sensor is a warning, a damaged one is an attack, and the line between them can be deliberately blurred.
What China already has, according to the report
The report says China already operates multiple ground-based laser systems capable of disrupting, degrading or damaging satellites in low Earth orbit. It goes further in projecting that, by the late 2020s, China may field space-based directed-energy systems and higher-powered ground-based systems capable of threatening satellites in higher orbits. The DIA did not specify whether the weapons would use lasers, high-power microwaves, particle beams or a combination. Crucially, no Chinese spacecraft has been publicly identified as carrying an operational directed-energy weapon today — the space-based capability is assessed as coming, not present.
The spaceplane in the photograph
The report also published a rare satellite image of China's secretive reusable spaceplane, credited to imagery firm Maxar in 2024, showing a shuttle-like craft with apparent solar arrays. The vehicle is believed to be uncrewed and closer in size to the American X-37B than to the old Space Shuttle. The DIA said its missions have involved manoeuvring close to a companion satellite and releasing an object in orbit, and that the vehicles are more manoeuvrable than traditional satellites. Alongside it, the report notes China's 2025 demonstration of satellite refuelling in geostationary orbit — roughly 36,000 kilometres above the equator, a first beyond low Earth orbit — a tested robotic arm capable of grappling spacecraft, and a fleet of TJS-series satellites that maintain persistent proximity to foreign spacecraft.
Why this warning matters beyond the military
Satellites run GPS navigation, weather forecasting, communications and financial timing for civilians as well as militaries, so anything that can disable them from orbit touches daily life, not just warfare. The report also names Russia as a parallel counterspace threat and notes emerging programs in Iran and North Korea. Context matters too: the United States itself recently acknowledged, for the first time, that it has weapons in orbit. The honest reading of the DIA report is therefore narrower than the headlines: China is building the toolkit for space conflict, US intelligence believes an orbital directed-energy weapon is plausible within a few years, and the race to protect — or threaten — the satellites overhead is now openly under way.
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