China is urging the United States to protect the Chinese space station and its crew of three after Beijing complained that satellites launched by Elon Musk's SpaceX nearly crashed into the station.

A foreign office spokesman accused Washington of ignoring its treaty obligations to protect the Tiangong Station crew following the July 1 and October 21 incidents.

Tiangong performed evasive maneuvers to prevent potential collisions with Starlink satellites launched by Space Exploration Technologies Corp., the Chinese government said in a complaint to the UN Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space.

The United States must take immediate action to prevent a recurrence of such incidents, said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian, accusing Washington of failing to fulfill its obligations to protect astronaut safety under the 1967 Peaceful Uses of Space Treaty.