Does Russia want to station nuclear anti-satellite weapons in space? Corresponding intelligence reports are causing unrest at NATO. Now there should be talks.
NATO may need to prepare for an additional threat from Russia. According to reports from several US media outlets, American secret services have information about Russia’s new nuclear ambitions in space. These capabilities could therefore be directed against satellites and thus threaten national and international security.
Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said on the sidelines of a NATO meeting in Brussels that he had no information yet that Russia might want to station nuclear anti-satellite weapons in space. However, he announced that he would discuss this with partners. “As far as I know, these reports are very, very new, at least for me,” said the SPD politician.
Pistorius warned against giving hasty answers or thinking you have them. “We have to clarify the technical questions and then see what the conclusion is,” he said.
Danger to military communications and reconnaissance
According to information from the New York Times, Russia’s nuclear capabilities now being discussed are still being developed and have not yet been used. There is therefore no acute danger. Fox News reported that using nuclear systems against satellites could potentially eliminate US military communications and intelligence. There was initially no official confirmation of the reports.
The New York Times also wrote that the US had informed Congress and allies in Europe about Moscow’s plans. However, it is conceivable that in Europe only Great Britain was initially inaugurated. The Americans maintain particularly close intelligence cooperation with this country.
White House: No immediate threat
US National Security Council Communications Director John Kirby confirmed on Thursday evening that Russia was developing military capabilities for use against satellites in space – although he left the specific nature of the threat open. Kirby stressed there was no immediate threat to “anyone’s” safety. It is not an “active ability” or a weapon that can be used to attack people. However, Russia’s activities are being monitored and the situation is being taken very seriously.
Kremlin accuses US government of domestic political goals
The Kremlin accused the US government of pursuing political goals by deliberately disseminating the information. “It is obvious that the White House is trying to use all tricks and subtleties to get Congress to vote on the bill to provide money (for Ukraine),” said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, according to the Interfax news agency.
The money mentioned by Peskov is arms aid for Ukraine, which is being attacked by Russia. After a months-long dispute between Democrats and Republicans, the US Senate approved the release of the funds a few days ago. However, the House of Representatives still has to agree – and whether this will happen is questionable. The Republicans are in charge in the House of Representatives. And MPs from the right-wing fringe of the party are vehemently opposed to further US aid to Ukraine.
NATO has been working on scenarios for years
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg initially did not want to comment on the issue in more detail on Thursday. At the press conference after the defense ministers’ meeting, he only confirmed that intelligence information was constantly being exchanged. You always keep an eye on the effects of new findings.
In order to be able to react better to attacks against satellites, NATO had already decided in 2021 that attacks from or in space can in future be treated as an alliance case according to Article 5 on collective defense – in the same way as attacks on the ground or in the air or sea – or cyberspace.
The step was justified, among other things, by the fact that attacks on satellites could be used in the event of a war to paralyze parts of public life. For example, the processing of cashless payment transactions, mobile phone networks or navigation systems for road, sea and air transport could be severely affected.
Outer Space Treaty bans nuclear weapons in orbit
Because the international outer space treaty prohibits placing nuclear weapons in Earth orbit, it is currently assumed that there are no nuclear weapons in space. However, this is not entirely clear, as some space missions are quite opaque. In general, space can also be used militarily – but not to resolve conflicts with violence.
What is certain is that a nuclear bomb exploding in near-Earth orbit would cause enormous damage. All electronics, such as satellites, that we use for communications, navigation or Earth observation would be destroyed, thereby disabling nations’ space capabilities. Only hardened, i.e. particularly secured, satellites could be resistant to such an attack, but there are probably not many of them.
Research also in Europe
Targeted attacks against individual satellites or constellations do not currently appear possible with nuclear weapons. If a nuclear bomb were detonated in space, a spacefaring nation would also affect its own satellites. Satellites are currently being targeted with cyber attacks or blinding attempts from the ground.
Research into nuclear weapons in space is not only carried out in Russia, but also in Europe and the USA. It is conceivable that Russia could put a nuclear weapon into space without actually detonating it as a deterrent and deliberate violation of agreements. Likewise, the debate could be a misunderstanding and there are nuclear-powered satellites, such as Russia has already used in the past, or a nuclear-powered station, but not weapons.
Nuclear weapons tests in space only occurred at the beginning of the space era in the early 1960s. Further test detonations are prohibited by the Nuclear Weapons Test Ban Treaty.
MPs calm down
Several members of the US House of Representatives, who are privy to intelligence information, tried to calm the general excitement following the media reports. They emphasized – without going into detail about the content – that this was a serious matter, but by no means an acute crisis. The Republican leader of the House of Representatives, Mike Johnson, also assured: “There is no reason for public alarm.” Canadian Defense Minister Bill Blair, however, called the reports at the NATO meeting in Brussels worrying.