COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — Keep U.S. Space Command in Colorado.
That was the message Colorado's congressional delegation made loud and clear in a letter delivered to President Joe Biden Tuesday.
“We remain deeply troubled that the decision to relocate USSPACECOM undermined the two most important factors for any critical basing decision: protecting national security and minimizing cost,” the letter stated.
Democratic Sens. Michael Bennet and John Hickenlooper were joined in the letter by Republican Reps. Doug Lamborn, Ken Buck and Lauren Boebert, as well as Democratic Reps. Jason Crow, Diana DeGette, Ed Perlmutter and Joe Neguse.
With U.S. Space Command, U.S. Northern Command, Army Space and Missile Defense Command and the North American Aerospace Defense Command, no place in the United States can claim more strategic importance than Colorado Springs.
Colorado has the largest contingent of bases named for the new space service. It is also home to Buckley Space Force Base in Aurora, Space Operations Command and the bulk of the Space Force's 13,000 troops.
Colorado Springs is the provisional home of U.S. Space Command — which oversees all military missions in orbit — until at least 2026. Former President Donald Trump announced in January 2021 that Space Command and its 1,400 troops would be uprooted and moved to Huntsville, Alabama, as soon as 2026. But the Government Accountability Office and the Pentagon's Office of Inspector General are reviewing the decision, and Congress could reverse it. Findings from the investigations into potential political influence are expected soon.
The delegation urged Biden to “carefully review both reports and ensure that the final basing decision takes the findings, and national security and cost implications, into account.”
“At a time when threats in space are rapidly increasing, particularly from Russia and China, USSPACECOM cannot afford any operational interruptions and must achieve Full Operational Capability (FOC) as quickly as possible,” the lawmakers wrote.
“As you are well aware, space has become an increasingly critical and contested domain that is central to our economy, communications and national security. President (Vladimir) Putin’s lawless, reprehensible aggression against Ukraine in violation of international rules and norms, underscores the urgency for America to maintain superiority in the space domain.”
Russia began a large-scale invasion of Ukraine Feb. 24 and has violated international law by targeting civilian populations. Ukrainians – many who have taken up arms to defend their country – has slowed Russia’s advance toward the capital city of Kyiv after nearly one month of fighting.
In addition to defending satellite systems and providing GPS navigation, U.S. Space Command assists with national security communications, internet and cellular services along with missile warning and defense.
“We support the export controls and sanctions that you have enacted to degrade Russia’s defense programs, particularly in light of Russia’s unlawful invasion of Ukraine. Our adversaries, however, will waste no time enhancing their space control operations, and neither can we waste time in developing our space defense strategies and capabilities," the letter continued.
“We must respond to rapidly advancing threats in space by building on the investments that have already been made in Colorado and to our mission in space — not squandering time, money, personnel, and additional resources by moving USSPACECOM.”
The letter mentioned many of the space assets already in place in Colorado, including the National Space Defense Center at Schriever Space Force Base and the National Reconnaissance Office’s Aerospace Data Facility-Colorado at Buckley . Both agencies keep an eye on space and warns against threats as part of their mission.
“Over the past several decades, Colorado has also developed national security communications systems that would be extraordinarily expensive to quickly replicate elsewhere. These unparalleled missions, and existing infrastructure, make Colorado the nexus of national security space operations for the Intelligence Community and the Department of Defense,” the letter state.
The intelligence community warned in its annual threat assessment that “Russia continues to train its military space elements and field new anti-satellite weapons to disrupt and degrade U.S. and allied space capabilities,” the letter said.
Russia performed an anti-satellite missile test last November, launching a missile that destroyed Cosmos 1408, a defunct Soviet reconnaissance satellite. The satellite was blown into roughly 1,500 trackable pieces of debris now in Earth’s orbit . U.S. Space Command is responsible for tracking the debris.
At the time, Gen. James Dickinson, commander of U.S. Space Command said, “Russia has demonstrated a deliberate disregard for the security, safety, stability, and long-term sustainability of the space domain for all nations.”
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