President Donald Trump¹ announced Monday he is directing the Pentagon to create a new "Space Force" as an independent military service branch aimed at ensuring American supremacy² in space.

 

美国总统特朗普周一宣布，他降授意五角大楼建立一支独立的军种“太空军”以确保美国在太空领域的霸主地位。

 

While Trump has previously³ talked about his desire for a space unit, he seemed to take those musings one step further, specifically ordering the Pentagon to begin the creation of a sixth branch of the American armed forces.

 

"When it comes to defending America, it is not enough to merely have an American presence in space. We must have American dominance in space," Trump said during remarks at the White House. "We are going to have the Air Force and we are going to have the Space Force, separate but equal."

 

Turning to seek out Marine⁴ Gen. Joseph Dunford, chairman of the Joint⁵ Chiefs of Staff, Trump said, "General Dunford, if you would carry that assignment out, I would be very greatly honored also ...Where's General Dunford?  General?  Got it?"

 

Dunford appeared to acknowledge the order, responding, "we got it." But the directive seemed to take defense⁶ officials by surprise. Creating a new joint military command is largely the purview⁷ of Congress, which would have to provide the authority and any funding or shifting of money to a new unit.

 

Pentagon spokeswoman Dana White said that the department understands the president's guidance, and is working on the matter while taking into consideration the implications for intelligence operations for the other services. "Working with Congress, this will be a deliberate process with a great deal of input⁸ from multiple stakeholders," she said.

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