Geopolitical tensions reach new heights in 2025, as the USA steps up its space surveillance to keep a close eye on China’s movements. American satellites play a crucial role in this strategy, scrutinizing every suspicious activity and providing valuable data to policymakers. This heightened surveillance reflects a growing rivalry between the two world powers, each seeking to assert its technological and military dominance in space.
As the stakes continue to rise, Earth’s orbit becomes the scene of intense competition, raising questions about the future of international security and space cooperation.
Close surveillance: American strategy in orbit
Last April, the American satellite USA 324 carried out “Rendezvous and Proximity Operations” to approach the Chinese satellites TJS-16 and TJS-17. These flybys, at distances of 17 km and 12 km respectively, illustrate the growing importance of space surveillance in a context of heightened geopolitical tensions.
Operating more than 35,000 kilometers from Earth, USA 324 is part of a U.S. Space Force initiative to monitor activities in geosynchronous orbit. These operations allow close examination of neighboring satellites, strengthening the United States’ ability to track and analyze potentially threatening space objects.
China’s space ambitions under the watchful eye of the United States
China’s recently launched TJS-16 and TJS-17 satellites are officially intended to test communications technologies. However, some experts suspect that they may also fulfill undisclosed missions, such as surveillance or military activities. This uncertainty is fuelling US concerns, especially as China has considerably expanded its fleet of spy and surveillance satellites in recent years.
At the same time, China’s rapid development of anti-satellite weapons, such as laser systems and microwave tools, is heightening fears of a militarization of space, prompting the United States to step up its vigilance and strategic alliances to counter this potential threat.
International cooperation to counter the space threat
Faced with the rapid expansion of Chinese space capabilities, the United States is working closely with the Five Eyes alliance to share sensitive information. This cooperation aims to strengthen space security and anticipate potential threats. Colonel Ramsey Horn of the U.S. Space Force recently emphasized that China remains America’s main concern in orbit.
Strategic exchanges have taken place, notably with the UK, to observe the Space Force’s GSSAP system. These joint efforts illustrate the importance of a coordinated response to monitor and counter Chinese technological advances, which include weapons capable of disrupting or destroying satellites, thus heightening tensions in this new space of strategic competition.
