China warns against space arms race, urges equal rights for all in outer space

Addressing the inaugural Global Governance Forum near Beijing on Friday evening, Foreign Minister Wang Yi framed the document as one of eight key actions under Beijing’s Global Governance Initiative (GGI) – an overarching vision introduced by President Xi Jinping in September last year.

“We would like to see that the rules of outer space governance keep pace with exploration, reflect broad participation and benefit all countries,” Wang told an audience of nearly 400 representing more than 90 nations.

The paper, titled “China’s Stance on Enhancing Outer Space Governance”, was released by state news agency Xinhua shortly afterwards.

The release of the paper comes weeks after US Air Force Secretary Troy Meink – the civilian head of the department that oversees both the US Air Force and Space Force – acknowledged for the first time that the Pentagon had deployed weapons in space.

Beijing has consistently classified the deep sea, polar regions, cyberspace and outer space as “new frontiers” where regulatory frameworks are falling behind human activity, calling for urgent global rule-making.

Pointing to uneven space development among nations, the position paper highlighted the need to safeguard the space rights of all countries and uphold the international rule of law in outer space.

“The risk of an arms race and the growing trend towards weaponisation have become the greatest threats and challenges facing outer space security. Strengthening outer space global governance is an urgent task for humanity and a shared responsibility for all nations,” it said.

The paper also emphasised Beijing’s strong opposition to space activities that compromise other nations’ sovereignty, security or development interests, calling for mutual respect regarding every state’s space assets, missions and personnel.

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Without explicitly naming the US, the paper expressed strong opposition to “unilateral sanctions” imposed on other nations’ space activities.

“[We] must adhere to the exploration and use of outer space for peaceful purposes, and oppose the weaponisation of outer space and its transformation into a battlefield. [We] oppose any single country misusing its domestic laws to create obstacles for – or impose unilateral sanctions on – the space activities of other nations.”

The US has banned Nasa-China cooperation and blacklisted several Chinese aerospace and satellite firms. Beijing views these measures as discriminatory barriers designed to curb its growing space programme and isolate its commercial sector from global supply chains.

On security and legal fronts, the paper reiterated China’s resistance to turning outer space into a battlefield and to its weaponisation. To head off military conflict, the document called for a ban on offensive space doctrines and called for maximum efforts to avert an arms race.

Addressing commercial space regulation, the paper called for stringent oversight of private ventures. Companies must strictly comply with domestic and international law without encroaching on the rights of other nations, it stressed, specifically warning against their illegal involvement in other countries’ armed conflicts or internal affairs.

Wang’s announcement and the position paper release come days after China launched a sharp critique of US space strategy at the United Nations.

Addressing a UN General Assembly meeting on Tuesday, China’s ambassador for disarmament affairs, Li Chijiang, warned that preventing an arms race in space and the weaponisation of outer space has become the “most urgent task” in space security governance.

Li criticised the United States for treating space as a “war-fighting domain”, accusing Washington of seeking “hegemony in outer space” with the deployment of “space control weapons”.

Outlining Beijing’s proposals, Li urged the international community to speed up negotiations on an outer space arms control treaty, emphasising that space rules must be crafted collectively by all nations rather than dictated by “exclusive cliques”.

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Li also highlighted emerging security risks, calling for deeper analysis of the legal disputes and practical hazards associated with commercial space assets.

First proposed by Xi in 2025 as a pillar of China’s foreign policy framework alongside earlier initiatives on development, security and global civilisation, GGI advocates for a UN-centric international order and greater representation for the Global South.

Chinese officials say the initiative – which Beijing says has won support from over 160 countries – is intended to address mounting “governance deficits” as traditional multilateral mechanisms face growing strain.