RIO DE JANEIRO • A Space Force is necessary to protect American satellites from being targeted by attack weapons in the hands of China and Russia, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said Tuesday.

Mattis’ comments came days after Vice President Mike Pence announced ambitious plans to create a sixth, separate military warfighting service by 2020 to ensure American dominance in space.

Speaking during a trip to Brazil, Mattis said repeatedly that the U.S. has no plans to put weapons in space, but he emphasized the vital and growing role that satellites play not just in military operations but in the world economy.

He recalled China’s use of a ground-based missile to destroy one of its own nonfunctional weather satellites in January 2007, which he suggested was a calculated demonstration to the United States of Chinese capabilities.

“We understand the message that China was sending — that they could take out a satellite in space,” Mattis said in remarks to about 270 military officers and civilians at Brazil’s premier war college.

“Since then our intelligence services have watched other nations, including Russia, develop a space attack capability.”

Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis receives military honors before his meeting with Brazil’s defense minister in Brasilia on Monday.

the associated press