U.S. Secretary of the Air Force Troy Meink said the United States has "on-orbit space control weapons capable of defending the joint force against hostile adversary action" when giving a keynote at the 2026 Air, Space and Cyber Conference, Military Times reported on Sept. 14. Meink's remarks are the first public disclosure that the United States has deployed on-orbit weapons, though he declined to specify what type of weapons the United States has deployed.