Russia says private satellites could become 'legitimate target' during wartime

Russia makes statements about the international order in space.

As the United States continues to leverage more commercial satellites for intelligence and communications work, Russia has warned that they may become a legitimate target. The United Nations' open-ended working group on reducing space threats is holding a meeting in September. The purpose of the meeting is to discuss how to reduce threats and increase cooperation in space through the creation and adoption of new rules.

Private satellite companies have a growing strategic importance.

The comments were made by a member of the Russian Foreign Ministry. The Russian delegation would like to highlight an extremely dangerous trend that goes beyond the harmless use of outer space technologies and has become apparent during the events in Ukranian.

The use of commercial and civilian satellite assets by the United States and its allies throughout the ongoing invasion of Ukraine may constitute indirect involvement in military conflicts.

The provocative use of civilian satellites is questionable under the Outer Space Treaty, which provides for the exclusively peaceful use of outer space, and must be strongly condemned by the international community.

Russia's comments about targeting commercial assets in space come after its invasion of Ukraine prompted Musk's company to send multiple shipments of Starlink terminals to the country. Commercial satellite imagery firms such as Planet, Maxar and BlackSky have been providing crucial intelligence by taking pictures of the conflict from above and sharing them openly.

The Russian delegation warned the UN against the adoption of "fragmented, non-inclusive rules for regulating space activities that do not take into account approaches of all UN Member States and seek to ensure space dominance of a small group of states." Russia wants the United Nations to focus on assuming national and international obligations to not place weapons of any kind in outer space and to prohibit the threat or use of force against or with space objects.

A day after Germany and Japan pledged not to conduct destructive anti-satellite tests, Russia made a statement at the UN.

Russia hasn't made a pledge.

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