Moscow Threatens U.S. Satellites --- Senior official says commercial systems will be targeted if they are used to help Kyiv

"MOSCOW -- Russia said it could target U.S. commercial satellites if they are used to help Ukraine, expanding its threats of reprisals to a new theater that could hit closer to home for American interests.

Russian President Vladimir Putin, meanwhile, said at a policy conference in Moscow on Thursday that his country has no intention of using nuclear weapons in Ukraine, suggesting it was speculation. Mr. Putin again framed the worsening friction between Russia and the U.S. in terms of what he sees as a cultural war in which the West is trying to impose its will on the rest of the world.

"We have never said anything on our own initiative about the possible use of nuclear weapons by Russia," he said, "but only hinted at it in response to statements made by the leaders of Western countries."

His remarks came as tensions between Russia and the U.S. continue to build, this time after Konstantin Vorontsov, a senior official in Russia's Foreign Ministry, told a meeting of the First Committee of the United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday that if U.S. satellites were used to aid Kyiv, they "could be a legitimate target for a retaliatory strike."

It couldn't be immediately determined whether Mr. Vorontsov's referred to physical strikes or disabling them through cyberattacks.

Mr. Vorontsov, who is deputy director of the Russian Foreign Ministry's Department for Nonproliferation and Arms Control, didn't name any business, but Elon Musk recently pledged that his company SpaceX would continue to fund access for the Ukrainian government to its Starlink satellite-internet system.

In addition, American satellite operators such as Viasat Inc., Maxar Technologies Inc. and Planet Labs PBC have contracts to provide services to different U.S. national-security agencies. Representatives from those companies either declined to comment or didn't have a comment.

"We're going to continue to pursue all means to expose, deter and hold Russia accountable for any such attack should that occur," said John Kirby, coordinator for strategic communications at the White House National Security Council.

Asked whether Russia has the capabilities to conduct such an attack, Mr. Kirby said, "The Russians have been trying to pursue antisatellite technology and capabilities."

Starlink has emerged as an important tool for the Ukrainian military, keeping troops connected on front lines where regular service isn't available. 

Ukrainian officials have praised the system, pointing to instances where Starlink provided connections after cruise-missile attacks damaged infrastructure, but have at times been wary of Mr. Musk.

Earlier this month, he tweeted that Crimea had been part of Russia since 1783 until 1954, when Moscow transferred the peninsula to the Ukrainian Soviet republic before retaking it in 2014.

A range of Pentagon agencies, meanwhile, have been placing orders to use Mr. Musk's SpaceX satellite capabilities despite a recent dispute between the two sides over the funding of satellite-based internet services for Ukraine, government documents show.

Mr. Musk has indicated that SpaceX has faced Russian attempts to disrupt Starlink, which permits users with a company terminal to access internet connections via a growing fleet of satellites in orbit relatively close to Earth. In a tweet earlier this month, he said Starlink had come under "relentless jamming attacks."

SpaceX didn't respond to requests for comment.

Viasat, a Carlsbad, Calif.-based company, has said that it faced a deliberate cyberattack in late February on part of one of its networks that affected several thousand customers in Ukraine and tens of thousands of others across Europe. In May, the Danish Defense Ministry said it and allies believed that Russia was behind that attack.

Some analysts said the statement from the Russian official is significant.

"It is a threat and a sort of escalation that can turn space into a battlefield earlier than anticipated," said Arne Sonnichsen, coordinator for researchers on security and technology in outer space called SichTRaum at Universitat Duisburg-Essen in Germany." [1]

1. World News: Moscow Threatens U.S. Satellites --- Senior official says commercial systems will be targeted if they are used to help Kyiv
Simmons, Ann M; Maidenberg, Micah. 
Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition; New York, N.Y. [New York, N.Y]. 28 Oct 2022: A.8.