US bid to shoot down satellite 'a safety precaution'

The Bush administration is trying to convince foreign countries that the US Defence Department’s plan to shoot down a dying spy satellite is not a military test.

The State Department has instructed US diplomats around the world to inform their host governments that the operation, which might be conducted as early as next week, will be aimed solely at protecting people who could be affected by 1,000 pounds of toxic fuel on the bus-sized satellite now hurtling towards Earth.