With the successful testing of a ground-based medium-range ballistic missile to destroy an aging weather satellite in space, the Chinese government may have started a space arms race that could force many countries like the United States to develop anti-missile systems to protect their satellites in space.

The United States and other countries have expressed their concerns to Beijing. US National Security Council spokesman Gordon Johndroe said the US "believes China's development and testing of such weapons is inconsistent with the spirit of co-operation that both countries aspire to in the civil space area".

According to the Associated Press (AP), Lt. Gen. Michael Maples, Director of the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), said in his annual address to Congress last week that China and Russia are the "primary states of concern’’ regarding the U.S. military space program.

So far, China has not confirmed or commented on the shooting down of the weather satellite. (Updates below)

US Calls On China to Explain Anti-Satellite Weapon

A senior State Department official says the United States wants China to explain why it developed an anti-satellite weapon, calling the move "inconsistent with the constructive relationship" on the use of space agreed to by the two countries' presidents.

The official, who spoke to VOA on condition of anonymity, said the ability to use space is vital to U.S. national security, economic and foreign policy interests. And he said the hundreds of pieces of debris that resulted from the Chinese test endanger other vehicles in space, including manned vehicles, and may endanger people on the ground when they eventually fall to earth.

The official said the Chinese test did not violate any international treaties, but did violate what he called the "the intent and the spirit" of the international Space Treaty, which guarantees free access to space for all peaceful purposes. He said the United States "reserves the right to defend and protect its space systems with a wide range of options from diplomatic to military."

In a VOA interview before the Chinese test was conducted, the head of strategic planning and analysis at the U.S. Air Force Space Command said U.S. policy calls for the protection of the country's access to space. Brigadier General Robert Worley would not discuss any potential threat from any specific countries, but he said the need for free access to space requires his command to consider how to preserve that access. "We all know that there are some actors out there, whether they be nations or non-state actors, that might wish to do us harm in this area. And so we, like any other nation, preserve and reserve the right to take action to prevent people from doing bad things to us," he said.

General Worley says the United States is not interested in developing any space weapons, and may not have to in order to deter attacks on its space assets. The general says the U.S. ability to track everything that happens in space may be enough. "I think there's a significant deterrent effect of everyone knowing that we could attribute a hostile act in space to a particular state or non-state actor," he said.

Still, General Worley acknowledges that Space Command has the responsibility to look at additional ways to prevent attacks on U.S. satellites, ground stations and communications links. He would not provide details. The United States ended its anti-satellite weapon program more than 20 years ago after one successful test. It currently has no space-based weapons or weapons designed to attack targets in space. But experts say a powerful U.S. laser weapon could be used to blind satellites, although it was not developed for that purpose.

British officials have also raised their concerns with China on Wednesday saying that Britain did not believe China had broken international law, but thought the test was "inconsistent" with Beijing's earlier assurances to the United Nations on the military use of space.

Update: The Times Online is reporting that China is claiming that it's missile strike against an orbiting satellite two weeks ago was not an act of provocation but was instead intended to try and bring the United States into talks aimed at abolishing weapons in space.