Global tensions have flared up as Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered troops to march into Ukraine earlier on Thursday. Russia has launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, after previously insisting it had no plans on attacking. Earlier this week, Putin announced he would be recognising two regions in eastern Ukraine – Donetsk and Luhansk – as independent states.
The development provided the pretext Moscow was after to order troops into its ex-Soviet neighbour, with a comprehensive invasion being launched just days later.
As Russian forces attack Ukraine, Christopher Scolese, the US National Reconnaissance Office Director, has warned that the Russian military could target satellites to disrupt communications and GPS services.
Speaking at the National Security Space Association’s Defense and Intelligence Space Conference, he said: “I think we’re seeing pretty clearly that Russia is committed to doing what they want to do in Ukraine, and they want to win.
“So I think it’s fair to assume that, to the extent that they can, and to the extent that they feel it won’t extend the conflict out of their control, that they will extend it into space,”
The NRO runs US Government-owned spy satellites for reconnaissance.
However, they have been increasingly working with commercial satellite operators like Maxar, Planet, BlackSky, and others to collect satellite imagery and intelligence.
Many of these private companies were able to expose the Russian build-up of troops along the borders of Ukraine months before the attack.
This means that if Russia tries to disrupt the US’s ability to gather intelligence, it could attack private satellites as well.