Russia and China are considering plans to put a nuclear power unit on the Moon in around the years 2033-2035, it has been reported.
The head of Russia’s space agency Roscosmos spoke of the plans on Tuesday, as reported by the RIA state news agency.
This comes just weeks after China and Russia confirmed they had been in talks regarding “outer space security” and “AI weapons”.
At the time, the Russian Foreign Ministry said officials from Moscow and Beijing had “a detailed exchange of assessments” of the use of AI technology.
The statement added that talks addressed “doctrinal guidelines and initiatives of Russia and China.”
During the talks, both countries agreed to further their cooperation on the Group of Governmental Experts (GGE) of the States Parties to the Convention on Inhumane Weapons on Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems (LAWS), a UN-backed policy on weapons development.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said: “The meeting confirmed the closeness of the Russian and Chinese approaches to this issue.
“It was noted that there is a need for further close cooperation in this area both in the bilateral format and in the relevant multilateral platforms, primarily within the framework of the GGE on LAWS.”
Meanwhile, China’s statement confirmed that talks covered “outer space security, biosecurity, and artificial intelligence.”
Earlier this week, US Space Command head Gen. Stephen Whiting warned that China is developing its space military capabilities at a “breathtaking” pace.
He said: “There is an urgency for our Command to advocate for delivery of new space capabilities and capacity to retain an enduring competitive advantage.”
Whiting added that China will have reached “world-class status in all but a few space technology areas” by 2030.
He went on to describe how China is “growing its military space and counterspace capabilities at breathtaking pace to deny American and Allied space capabilities when they so choose…while extending its ability to conduct long-range fires improving the precision and reach, thus the lethality, of its terrestrial forces.”
As for Russia, Whiting said Moscow “continues to pursue a suite of counterspace weaponry” including “directed energy weapons and satellite communications jammers.
“These weapons are intended to disrupt, threaten, and destroy space targets or otherwise deny freedom of action in space.
“Russia views its counterspace capabilities as a means to deter aggression from adversaries reliant on space.”
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