美國承認擁有軌道武器　被視為與中國、俄羅斯競逐中的里程碑時刻

卡塞爾・布萊恩-洛與喬伊・魯萊特報導By Cassell Bryan-Low and Joey Roulette

巴黎／華盛頓，9月15日（路透）——官員與分析人士表示，美國本週承認五角大廈正在地球軌道操作武器，這是太空軍事化的一個里程碑時刻，目的在於嚇阻美國官員所稱來自中國與俄羅斯的侵略性軌道活動。PARIS/WASHINGTON, Sept 15 (Reuters) - The U.S. acknowledgment this week that the Pentagon is operating weapons in Earth's orbit marks a landmark moment in space militarization aimed at deterring what U.S. officials describe as aggressive orbital activities from China and Russia, officials and analysts said.

美國太空軍司令道格拉斯・希斯（Douglas Schiess）週二表示，他所屬軍種的士兵「操作可在軌道上防衛聯合部隊免於太空支援攻擊的武器」。他補充說，隨著太空軍未來幾年擴大其軌道防衛武庫，將作出「有紀律且負責任的選擇」。U.S. Space Force chief Douglas Schiess said on Tuesday that enlisted members of his military branch "operate on-orbit weapons that can defend the Joint Force against space-enabled attacks." The service will make "disciplined and responsible choices" as it scales its orbital defense arsenal in the coming years, he added.

希斯是在華盛頓附近一場會議上發表上述談話。前一天，美國空軍部長特洛伊・梅因克表示，美國「擁有可在軌道上控制太空、並能保護聯合部隊免於敵對對手行動的武器」。在美國與俄羅斯、中國的太空緊張升高之際，這是迄今五角大廈官員對美國在軌道上部署武器所作最明確的承認。Schiess' remarks at a conference near Washington came a day after U.S. Air Force Secretary Troy Meink said the U.S. "has on-orbit space control weapons capable of defending the Joint Force against hostile adversary action." That was the clearest admission yet by a Pentagon official of U.S. weapons in orbit amid rising space tensions with Russia and China.

非營利組織安全世界基金會（Secure World Foundation）太空安全與穩定首席主任維多利亞・薩姆森（Victoria Samson）表示，華府最高軍事太空官員本週的談話，是「美國政府越來越能夠自在談論太空中侵略行動」的一部分；這種趨勢近年來逐漸形成。The remarks this week by Washington's top military-space officials are part of "the increasing comfort level of the U.S. government to speak about aggressive actions in space" that has been building up in recent years, said Victoria Samson, chief director of space security and stability at the nonprofit Secure World Foundation.

薩姆森說：「我們已經從不談反太空能力……走到現在直白地說我們在太空中有武器。鐘擺持續朝那個方向擺動。」"We've gone from not talking about counter-space capabilities… to now saying flat-out we have weapons in space,” Samson said. "The pendulum keeps on shifting over that way."

希斯與梅因克在發言後接受記者訪問時，拒絕說明他們所指的是哪些類型的武器。Schiess and Meink declined to say what types of weapons they were referring to when they spoke to reporters after their remarks.

針對美國承認擁有軌道武器，中國外交部發言人郭嘉昆在X上表示，北京「主張和平利用外太空並維護其安全，反對任何外太空軍備競賽，或任何將外太空武器化、戰場化的企圖」。Responding to the U.S. admission of orbital weapons, China's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said on X that Beijing "stands for peaceful use of the outer space and keeping it safe, and opposes any arms race in outer space or any attempt to weaponize it and turn it into a warzone."

俄羅斯外交部表示，華府承認已部署軌道武器，忽視了衝突可能造成的後果，並威脅以太空為基礎之活動的長期穩定。Russia's Foreign Ministry said the acknowledgement that Washington had deployed orbital weapons ignored the possible consequences of a conflict and threatened long-term stability in space-based activity.

衝突可能延伸至太空CONFLICTS COULD EXTEND INTO SPACE

美國、中國與俄羅斯是全球三大太空強權，多年來競相建置並部署各式衛星網路與可機動太空船，這些系統具備可用來攻擊或干擾其他太空船的能力。The U.S., China and Russia - the world's top three space powers - have raced for years to build and deploy an array of satellite networks and maneuverable spacecraft bearing capabilities that could be used to attack or tamper with other spacecraft.

不過，在太空這個相對陌生的戰場上，軍事規範、戰略先例與戰爭法仍發展不足，目前並無任何國家被認為已採取更具後果的行動，也就是在太空中實際攻擊他國衛星。But as military norms, strategic precedent and laws of war in the relatively unfamiliar battleground of space remain underdeveloped, no nation is known to have taken the more consequential step of physically attacking another's satellite in space.

儘管如此，美方談話凸顯太空船科技發展如何迅速升高為越來越公開的準備，以因應衝突可能延伸至太空的前景；同時，從烏克蘭到中東的戰事也證明，衛星在支援地球上的現代戰爭方面已變得不可或缺。Still, the U.S. remarks underscore how quickly developments in spacecraft technologies have escalated into increasingly open preparations for the prospect of conflict extending into space, while battles from Ukraine to the Middle East prove how indispensable satellites have become in supporting modern warfare on Earth.

美國太空司令部能力與資源整合局局長理查・帕默（Richard Palmer）週二表示：「承認這些太空控制能力，對於確保我們防止嚇阻失效至關重要；若嚇阻失效，我們也已完成部署並做好準備，能有效運用這些能力。」"The acknowledgment of these space-control capabilities is fundamental to ensuring that we prevent deterrence from failing, and that we are postured and ready should deterrence fail to employ them effectively," Richard Palmer, the director of the Capability and Resource Integration Directorate at U.S. Space Command, said on Tuesday.

帕默在巴黎出席顧問公司Novaspace主辦的太空防衛會議時補充說，「全球有一些行為者非常有興趣破壞在座各國及其盟友、以及歐洲和世界其他地區的共同利益。」他拒絕討論這些武器的性質或能力。Speaking at a space defence conference hosted by consulting firm Novaspace in Paris, Palmer added that there were “some actors across the globe who are very much interested in undermining the collective interests of the countries and allies gathered here in this audience and across Europe and the rest of the world.” He declined to discuss the nature or capability of those weapons.

帕默並說：「歸根究柢，我們的聯合部隊和盟軍需要太空。我們的經濟也需要太空。美國已準備好維護這一點。」"The bottom line is that our joint force and our allied forces require space. Our economies require space,” added Palmer. “We are ready in the U.S. to preserve that."

為太空戰作準備PREPARING FOR WAR IN SPACE

數十年來，衛星為地球上的武裝部隊提供通訊、導航與情報服務；而衛星一旦進入軌道，通常會維持在固定路徑上。For decades, satellites have provided communications, navigation and intelligence services to armed forces on Earth, and once placed in orbit typically remained on fixed paths.

然而，各國軍方日益將衛星視為主動武器平台，能透過訊號干擾來擾亂衛星運作、以雷射致盲感測器，甚至捕捉敵方太空船來發動攻擊。Increasingly, however, militaries view them as active weapons platforms capable of launching attacks by disrupting a satellite's operations through signal jamming, using lasers to blind sensors, or even capturing enemy spacecraft.

中國在2022年展示其能指揮一枚衛星抓取另一艘太空船，並在軌道上移動它。China in 2022 demonstrated it can command a satellite to grapple onto another spacecraft and move it in orbit.

美國近期舉行其規模最大的軌道演習，名為「阿波羅機動」（Apollo Maneuvers），旨在展示動態太空作戰。演習包含多個軌道上的衛星同步運作，並有國際與商業夥伴參與。The U.S. recently conducted its largest orbital exercise, called Apollo Maneuvers, designed to demonstrate dynamic space operations. It involved satellites in multiple orbits simultaneously plus participation from international and commercial partners.

奧古斯塔大學（Augusta University）情報與安全研究文學碩士課程主任克雷格・艾伯特（Craig Albert）表示，儘管相關展示日益密集，美國官員仍未公開談論這些具體武器本身，這留下了揣測與解讀空間，將形塑美國對手如何回應，也可能提高加速太空軍備競賽的風險。Despite the intensifying demonstrations, U.S. officials still have not openly discussed the specific weapons themselves, leaving room for assumptions and interpretations that will shape how U.S. adversaries respond and risk accelerating an arms race in space, said Craig Albert, graduate director of the Master of Arts in Intelligence and Security Studies at Augusta University.

艾伯特說：「在資訊不完整的情況下，競爭者可能會認為這些系統威脅到自己的太空資產，因而投資反太空能力或可相比擬的武器。」"In the absence of complete information, competitors may assume the systems threaten their own space assets and invest in counterspace capabilities or comparable weapons," Albert said.

美國太空司令部司令曾警告，對手正在發展可阻止美國使用關鍵系統、並削弱其軍事效能的能力；而且在衝突初期，對手很可能會尋求鎖定美國的太空資產。The head of U.S. Space Command has warned that adversaries are developing capabilities to deny the United States access to key systems and reduce military effectiveness, and that adversaries would likely seek to target U.S. space assets early in a conflict.

其他一些國家也正尋求發展反太空武器。其中包括德國；德國有一項350億歐元（400億美元）的軍事太空支出計畫，旨在因應來自對手日益增長的威脅。Some other countries are also looking to develop counter-space weapons. That includes Germany, which has a €35-billion ($40-billion) military space spending plan aimed at countering growing threats from adversaries.

（卡塞爾・布萊恩-洛巴黎報導、喬伊・魯萊特華盛頓報導；野宮千鶴、羅德・尼克爾與傑米・弗里德編輯）(Reporting by Cassell Bryan-Low in Paris and Joey Roulette in Washington; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama, Rod Nickel and Jamie Freed)