Washington — The United States must ready its armed forces to conduct military operations around the Moon, according to the top military adviser to President Donald Trump, who warned that future conflicts may extend well beyond Earth's surface.
The remarks came amid a broader push within the Pentagon to treat cislunar space — the area between Earth and the Moon — as a potential theatre of operations rather than solely a domain for scientific exploration or commercial enterprise.
Adding weight to the administration's concern, the commander of the Space Force's Combat Forces Command publicly noted that rival nations, specifically pointing to the People's Republic of China, are actively expanding their presence in the reaches of space beyond low-Earth orbit.
"Our potential adversaries such as the PRC are actively pursuing activities in the system, in parts of space," the Space Force official said, referring to the cislunar environment. The comment underscored a growing alarm within US military circles that China's space programme is moving into areas where American dominance has historically gone unchallenged.
Beijing has in recent years accelerated its lunar ambitions. China successfully landed robotic rovers on the far side of the Moon in 2019 and 2024, and has announced plans for a crewed lunar landing before the end of the decade. Analysts say those achievements signal an intention to establish a lasting footprint at the Moon — one that could eventually support dual civilian and military purposes.
The Trump administration's directive comes as the US Space Force, established in 2019, continues to evolve from a relatively modest orbital-monitoring organisation into a branch tasked with defending American interests across a widening range of space domains. Officials have repeatedly argued that traditional concepts of airspace and maritime borders no longer contain the scope of modern warfare.
Strategic experts note that controlling key gravitational points around the Moon — known as libration points — could give any military power significant surveillance and communication advantages over both the near side and far side of the celestial body. Those positions are considered strategically valuable for monitoring activity across the broader lunar neighbourhood.
The Chinese space agency has consistently framed its lunar programme as peaceful and scientific, but US defence officials argue that the line between civilian space operations and military capability has become increasingly blurred. Dual-use technologies — satellites that can both relay communications and track missile launches, for instance — make it difficult to separate exploratory missions from strategic preparation.
Pentagon planners are now reportedly weighing options for training, doctrine, and equipment tailored to the unique conditions of the lunar environment, including reduced gravity, extreme temperature swings, and delayed communications with Earth. Some proposals under discussion include adapting existing air-force and navy rapid-deployment concepts for use on the lunar surface.
Critics of the militarisation push warn that turning the Moon into a potential battlefield could provoke an arms race in space and undermine international cooperation on scientific missions. Supporters counter that passive posture invites vulnerability, especially when a rival is already advancing capabilities in the same region.
As the debate continues, US military leadership has made clear that the window for preparing lunar-defence strategies is narrow — and that waiting risks falling behind an opponent that is already moving.
"We cannot assume space will remain a sanctuary," one defence official told reporters on condition of anonymity. "The reality is changing, and we have to change with it."
