Russia dismisses U.S. claim that Moscow put an anti-satellite weapon in space

Russia’s top arms control diplomat on Wednesday dismissed as fake news an assertion by the United States that Russia had launched a weapon into low-Earth orbit that was capable of inspecting and attacking other satellites.
The Kremlin has flatly denied assertions by U.S. officials that Moscow is developing a space-based anti-satellite nuclear weapon. But on Tuesday, U.S. Space Command said Russia had launched an anti-satellite weapon.
The United States pointed a launch earlier this month of a Soyuz rocket from Russia’s Plesetsk launch site. Russia’s defence ministry said the May 17 launch had a spacecraft on board but gave no details what it was for.
U.S. Space Command said the launch was a likely a counterspace weapon capable of attacking other satellites in low Earth orbit.
“I don’t think we should respond to any fake news from Washington,” Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov was quoted as saying by the Interfax news agency about the U.S. claims.