The U.S. and China are engaged in an intensifying space race that will ultimately be decided not just by reaching the moon, but by controlling it, China expert Gordon Chang told Newsmax on Sunday, while discussing the Artemis II mission.
"The Chinese are closely watching this because they want to get on the moon first. Now, they probably won't. They're a year or two behind," Chang said on Newsmax, adding that the broader competition is about long-term presence.
"Let's remember there are two space races with China," Chang said. "One is a race to the moon. That's to actually put somebody there."
But the more important race, he said, is to colonize the moon.
"The country that gets to the south pole of the moon first will have the best location for a colony," he said.
Meanwhile, former astronaut Winston Scott, also on Sunday's program, said China's rapid progress has made the competition more urgent.
"The Chinese space program is the fastest-growing. You know, we, the U.S., have seen fits and starts over the last decade or so, but thank goodness we have an administration in place that is focused on us, on space, and refocused us and rededicate the resources we are," Scott said.
Chang said NASA's shifting timeline shows how tight the race has become.
"Well, the race is tight, according to NASA, and I think that's right," he said. "We have 2028 as our target date for getting to the moon, but that has slipped. It was supposed to be Artemis III. Now it's Artemis IV, as Capt. Scott just mentioned."
The Chinese also now have a space station, Chang said.
Scott highlighted China's growing position in orbit.
"The U.S. is getting ready to deorbit the International Space Station," Scott said. "If we do that here soon, that will leave China with the only permanently crewed space station in orbit. China is the only nation to have returned lunar samples from the far side of the moon."
He also pointed to Beijing's military focus in space.
"Another point that we need to think about is the militarization of space," Scott said. "Our Space Force is only a few years old and implemented by President [Donald] Trump in his first administration, but the Chinese have been militarizing space for many, many years."
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