China 'building cyberweapons to hijack enemy satellites', leaked CIA files show

Leaked US intelligence documents show China is building advanced cyberweapons capable of hijacking satellites of western nations, such as Australia, reports say.

Beijing has made information warfare a priority and is seeking the capability of "seizing control" of satellites in space, leaked top secret CIA file accessed by the Financial Times show.

The cyberweapons being developed by China's People's Liberation Army would leave satellites unable to support communication, weapons and surveillance systems.

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The technology would also enable China to control data transmission of the enemy country and gain full control of its satellite systems via surveillance and hacking, CIA analysts said in one of the leaked papers.

The claims in the Pentagon documents come amid tensions between the US and China over Beijing's claims over the self-governed island of Taiwan.

When Taiwan's President Tsai Ing-wen defied warnings from China to meet with US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy in California earlier this month, Beijing responded with extensive military exercises simulating a blockade of Taiwan.

The leaked documents exposed to the world US secret assessments on Russia's war in Ukraine, the capabilities and geopolitical interests of other nations and other national security issues.

An investigation by US authorities is targeting what security lapses took place that allowed airman Jack Teixeira to allegedly remove the top secret level documents from the Massachusetts National Guard base where he worked.

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Teixeira was charged in the US District Court in Boston with unauthorised removal and retention of classified and national defence information. He has not entered a plea.

Spy satellites have been launched by militaries from different countries for decades.

Since the conflict began in February 2022, Starlink satellites provided by Elon Musk's SpaceX company have proved crucial for the Ukrainian military in pinpointing enemy positions and intelligence gathering.

And last week, North Korea said it was on the verge of launching a military satellite.

- Reported with Associated Press

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