Illustration: Liu Rui/GT

The US has been hyping China's so-called space ambitions to displace the US as the dominant space power from China's successful debut flight of the Long March-5B in May to the launch of Chang'e-5 lunar probe that will retrieve Moon rocks.  

Some analysts have even called for the US to take countermeasures to protect its national interests and space security, claiming that China's increasing speed in space development has threatened international space security. 

Such voices show a Cold War mentality of the US and its long-standing prejudice against China. For a long time, the West has been deliberately targeting China, regarding China's space development as a security threat without any basis, but recognizing and encouraging the space development of other countries. This is an unreasonable and deliberate smear on China similar to the space hegemony competition between the US and the Soviet Union in the Cold War.

But China is not interested in engaging in any kind of Cold War in space. China believes that space is vast enough to allow all the countries with the capability and power to make use of such space resources. All of China's space exploration programs are open and transparent and are solely for the peaceful use of space resources. China develops such projects on its own to upgrade the country's scientific and technological level and its ability to explore space. China is also willing to share with scientists around the world the related technology and results. The way China explores space is peaceful and does not involve any aggressive or military elements. 

In fact, it is not China that has militarized space, but the US.

The US' ambitions for space hegemony are much too obvious. The US has created a space force, deliberately targeting other countries' space assets. In particular, US satellites have the capability of deterrence and attack. The country has clear military purposes.

In October, NASA announced bringing seven countries into its Artemis Accords, an agreement to explore the moon and Mars together. Some believe this is the US space version of the "enclosure movement." The US wants to build space hegemony. The Artemis program is like building a small base above the moon which can be landed on at any time. This is the US plan to return to the moon and better control the moon.

The US hopes to transform its scientific research capabilities in space into major military strength. Some of NASA's projects and technologies may be shared with the US space force. Many private companies may even participate in them.

One reason why the US is hyping China's intention to replace US dominance in space is that the US is jealous of China's accomplishments. Another possible reason is that US arms dealers are pushing the hype to make more money. 

US space exploration programs have been advancing at a slow pace, while China has been moving faster and steadier and achieving a lot of success. In addition, the establishment of the US space force has opened a whole new market for US arms dealers, who intend to sell space warfare-related weapons to the US space force. So they are deliberately setting up an image of China as an "imaginary enemy," putting a "danger" sign on it to create the false impression that the US and China are competing for supremacy in space. This will scare the Pentagon and the American public, and create a sense of fear, which may in turn lead the US space force to purchase more offensive warfare-related space weapons.

It is inevitable that there will be competition among major powers in the development of the space domain, but China will not participate in the Cold War-like competition initiated by the US.

China is entering and exploring space solely for peaceful purposes. Instead, the US should reverse its selfishness, exclusivism and hegemony, and adopt a more tolerant mind-set in space technology cooperation, actively promoting international cooperation, not fighting with swords and guns in space, using its space forces and targeting other countries' space assets, especially satellite systems, for deterrence.

Fundamentally, the US should abandon its hegemonic mentality. Otherwise, such unilateralism in space affairs will cause harm to its image, and the US' future promotion of cooperation in space will draw more suspicions and questions.

The author is a Beijing-based military analyst. opinion@globaltimes.com.cn