A month or so ago the Americans warned that a Spy satellite was out of control and was due to re-enter the earths atmosphere and break up. Last week they announced that they intend shooting it down 'to prevent it hitting residential areas'. I instantly suspected that what they meant was that something on-board might have technological importance to foreign countries and so they needed to ensure it didn't end up somewhere they couldn't get at it.

Over the weekend Russian and China have entered the fray, with Russia indicating that it 'was a U.S. plan could be used as a cover to test a new space weapon', and China says 'The Chinese government is paying close attention to how the situation develops and demands the U.S. side fulfill its international obligations and avoids causing damage to security in outer space and of other countries.'

In other words they both want what is on the satellite, intact...

Wasn't there a film called 'Ice Station Zebra' that dealt with something like this?

By the way we are not talking small satellite, this one's the size of a small bus. It is also relatively new being in space but a few months.