The U.S. military has announced the deployment of its first space weapon in orbit, The Washington Post reports, citing sources.

According to U.S. Secretary of the Air Force Troy Meink, the weapon will also serve as a tool of "deterrence against adversaries."

"This marked the first time the United States acknowledged that it possessed its own offensive capabilities in space," the publication says.

The secretary’s statement came amid several years of warnings that Russia and China were allegedly "conducting offensive maneuvers in orbit, in particular using lasers and creating radio interference."

According to the source, the space weapon will enable the United States to destroy enemy satellites if the spacecraft is being used to target U.S. forces or a satellite.

In addition, the United States is developing a network of space-based missiles that it plans to integrate into the "Golden Dome" missile defense system.

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