President Donald Trump has ordered the creation of a new military branch that would deal with space-related operations.
"Very importantly, I'm hereby directing the Department of Defense and Pentagon to immediately begin the process necessary to establish a Space Force as the sixth branch of the armed forces. That's a big statement," Trump said.
Trump announced the decision during a meeting of the National Space Council at the White House Monday.
"We are going to have the Air Force, and we are going to have the Space Force, separate but equal," Trump said.
Trump first proposed the idea of a space-focused military branch back in March.
He and some lawmakers argued China and Russia are better equipped to conduct space-related operations and that the U.S. will lag behind unless it puts more resources in space defense. But defense experts said the new branch wasn't feasible from a monetary perspective.
The Pentagon and the Air Force didn't immediately respond to requests for comment.
