Kenya drawn into US-China rivalry as space race heats up

This picture taken early on December 8, 2018 shows a Long March 3B rocket, transporting the Chang'e-4 lunar rover, lifting off from the Xichang launch centre in Xichang in China's southwestern Sichuan province. [FILE/AFP]

A new US congressional report has cast a spotlight on Kenya, warning that the country’s growing space partnership with China could be a front for expanding Beijing’s military ambitions in orbit.

The warning, issued by the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission (USCC), effectively draws Nairobi into the heart of a burgeoning great-power competition in space between rivals China and the US.