Tuesday’s accusation by Russia, which comes a day after Washington vetoed a Russian non-proliferation motion at the UN, was that the US was trying to station weapons in space.
“They have once again demonstrated that their true priorities in the area of outer space are aimed not at keeping space free from weapons of any kind, but at placing weapons in space and turning it into an arena for military confrontation,” Russia’s foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said in a statement.
In recent months, the two superpowers have exchanged accusations about their alleged attempts to weaponize space.
Washington expressed concern in February over a “anti-satellite capability that Russia has developed” following reports from US media outlets claiming that US intelligence agencies had alerted their allies to the possibility that Russia may launch a nuclear weapon into orbit.
Moscow refuted those claims, calling them “malicious” and “unfounded,” and asserting that it lacks such systems.
Since then, Russia has accused the US of similar crimes.
As part of the dispute, the nations submitted competing non-proliferation motions to the UN.
Russia vetoed the US initiative last month, and on Monday, the US, Britain, and France voted to reject Moscow’s proposal.
Moscow said the US initiative focused only on nuclear weapons and that Washington was not seriously interested in a complete ban on weapons in space.
US envoy Robert Wood said Russia’s proposal, which called on all countries to “take urgent measures to prevent for all time the placement of weapons in outer space,” was a distraction and accused Moscow of “diplomatic gaslighting.”
Zakharova said Tuesday that Russia “will continue to make an unwavering contribution to keeping outer space free of weapons of any kind and preventing it from becoming another sphere of tension and armed confrontation.”
Space is a rare area where the two countries still have a degree of cooperation despite a swathe of Western sanctions and dire relations amid Russia’s offensive on Ukraine.
Both countries ferry each other’s crew members to and from the International Space Station (ISS), where their astronauts are jointly stationed.