Russia04 October, 20262 min read
Dmitry Medvedev Warns Blocking Russia’s Rassvet Could Trigger Full-Scale Space Warfare
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Blocking Russia’s Rassvet satellite network at Ukraine’s request could amount to its destruction. Blocking could trigger full-scale space warfare.
8 outlets told this the same way.
Medvedev Threatens Space War
Dmitry Medvedev, Russia’s Security Council deputy chairman, warned that efforts to “block” Russia’s Rassvet satellite network could trigger “full-scale space warfare.” Medvedev said on Telegram that blocking the network at Ukraine’s request would effectively amount to its destruction, and he addressed the United States directly in his remarks. Medvedev added that “their low-orbit Starlink satellites would come tumbling down like ornaments from a dried-up Christmas tree,” framing the risk as retaliation in space. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told the Financial Times that he had asked U.S. President Donald Trump to impose sanctions on Russian and Chinese companies involved in developing a satellite network intended to rival Starlink.
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Zelenskyy, Trump, and Sanctions
Volodymyr Zelenskyy told the Financial Times that he had asked U.S. President Donald Trump to impose sanctions on Russian and Chinese firms involved in developing the Rassvet network. Zelenskyy said China was assisting Russia with the technology and that Rassvet could become operational by “the end of the year, beginning next year.” Zelenskyy warned that such a capability could improve the precision of Russian airstrikes as Moscow continued its aerial campaign against Ukraine. Medvedev’s warning followed the Ukrainian sanctions appeal, and Medvedev wrote that “space is a very crowded place; we need to be mutually courteous.”
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What’s at Stake in Space
Medvedev said blocking Rassvet at Ukraine’s request would amount to its destruction, and he warned that the move could lead to “full-scale space warfare.” Medvedev also argued that the consequences could extend beyond Rassvet, because Starlink satellites could face the same kind of fallout if a conflict in space began. The Russian warning came as Ukrainian officials pressed the United States to interfere with the operation of the Russian satellite system, according to Военное дело. Военное дело added that Rassvet satellites operate at an altitude of about 800 kilometers, while Starlink spacecraft are positioned at roughly 550 kilometers and below.
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