Donald Trump vows to create Space Force National Guard if elected president

Donald Trump has promised to create a Space Force National Guard if he is elected president.

The Republican candidate told the National Guard Association of the United States in Detroit that a reserve force is critical to space defense.

Fears that Russia is developing nuclear weapons specifically for use in space have grown in recent months.

Space is also becoming an important part of national security as adversaries continue to develop their military space capabilities.

Trump created the Space Force in December 2019, the first new branch of the military since 1947, when the Air Force became a standalone entity.

Now he wants to create a primary combat reserve, and he announced his plans at an event where he received the support of former Democratic congresswoman and presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard.

“One of the accomplishments I am most proud of during my first term was the creation of Space Force, the first new branch of the armed forces in more than 70 years,” he told about 4,000 group members Monday.

“It is time to establish a Space National Guard as the primary combat reserve of the U.S. Space Force,” he added.

“As President, I will sign historic legislation creating a National Guard.”

Space Force falls under the Air Force, much as the Marines fall under the Department of Navy.

The idea for a Space Force National Guard was floated under the Biden administration.

But the plans have already run into obstacles in Congress, the Pentagon and among state officials.

The governors of 48 states — including Tim Walz, Kamala Harris’ running mate — and five U.S. territories said they oppose the plan to redeploy thousands of reserve troops to space missions in April.

Joe Biden had proposed adding about 700 members of the Air National Guard to the Space Force.

But the governors said the plan would undermine their authority and impact “long-standing partnerships” and “military readiness.”

Trump created Space Force in December 2019 to form the first new branch of the military since 1947, when the Air Force became its own entity. He unveils the flag in the Oval Office in 2020

Space Force will have 14,000 military and civilian personnel, known as “Guardians,” by 2023.

Tasks performed by the agency – which encompasses a wide range of space functions within the Department of Defense – include acquiring satellite information and making GPS systems and communications accessible.

In April, Space Force conducted the first test of a ground-based warfare system to protect against “space attacks” from countries including Russia and China.

The device, which resembles a satellite dish, is designed to disrupt communications between satellites in space by cluttering the airwaves with competing signals.

Moscow has already shown that it can be deadly from space, testing an anti-satellite missile in 2021 that can hit all adversaries.

Russia’s attack blasted a malfunctioning spy satellite launched in 1982 into 1,500 pieces of debris, sparking global outrage.

The U.S. Space Force’s Space Training and Readiness Command (STARCOM) earlier this year began testing the Remote Modular Terminal (RMT), a satellite jamming device designed to protect troops from satellite attacks.

Space Force and Air Force personnel operate RMT equipment during a test of the new system. The devices are designed to be deployed in large numbers and operated remotely.

In 2020, Moscow fired an anti-satellite weapon from its Cosmos 2543 satellite while it was in orbit.

Vladimir Putin has also threatened the West with his deadliest hypersonic missile yet, which can launch into space and hit multiple targets on the ground.

The nuclear-capable Avangard missile, which can reportedly hit targets traveling at 27 times the speed of sound, has been seen in new footage installed at an underground launch site in Russia’s Orenburg region.

According to Moscow, the rocket, traveling at 32,000 km/h and a hypersonic glide vehicle, can leave the Earth’s atmosphere in less than 30 minutes before hitting any target on Earth.