Pentagon: Russia can destroy all satellites of Elon Musk

russia is developing an anti-satellite weapon with a nuclear charge that can indiscriminately destroy tens of thousands of satellites for various purposes belonging to different countries. An explosion could make low Earth orbit unusable for a year.

This was stated by John Plum, Assistant Secretary of Defence for Space Policy, at the House Armed Services Subcommittee, NBC reports.

In February, Intelligence Committee Chairman Mike Turner first publicly reported on Russia's possible development of nuclear space weapons and demanded that the White House declassify the relevant information.

Last week, National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said that, according to the US, "Russia is developing a new satellite that carries a nuclear device".

Plame, speaking at the hearing, said:

"Some analysts believe that a detonation in space with the right power in the right place could make, for example, low Earth orbit unusable for a certain period of time," he specified that it was about a year.

According to him, russia is developing a space nuclear device capable of carrying a satellite and a system for using this weapon.

"This system could pose a threat to all satellites operated by countries and companies around the world, as well as to the vital communications, scientific, meteorological, agricultural, commercial and national security services on which we all depend," Plame said. Such a space nuclear weapon, he said, would be "indiscriminate".

Low Earth orbit (altitude above the planet's surface from 160 km to 2000 km) is used by most of the Earth's artificial satellites.

Elon Musk's SpaceX Starlink satellites operate at an altitude of 525 to 535 km, and this grouping currently includes more than 6,000 satellites. Since the beginning of the war, Starlink communications have been actively used by the Ukrainian armed forces, in particular to control drones.

This year, Starlink terminals began to appear among Russian military personnel in the occupied territories. Although SpaceX does not allow the use of Starlink in Russia, supply channels and ways to activate the connection have been created.

There is no threat of Russia using new weapons in the near future, Plum said, but the Pentagon is concerned that in late April, Moscow vetoed a UN resolution banning the deployment of nuclear weapons in space. The document calls on countries to adhere to the 1967 Outer Space Treaty, under which all parties agreed "not to place objects carrying nuclear weapons or any other type of weapon of mass destruction in orbit around the Earth." Russia was the only one of the 15 members of the UN Security Council to vote against it (China abstained).

Plame called Russia's position "hypocritical" and "incredible", saying that it will not place weapons in space, but at the same time refuses to sign the UN call for a corresponding resolution.

White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan also noted this last week:

"We've heard President Putin say publicly that Russia has no intention of putting nuclear weapons in space. If that were the case, Russia would not have vetoed this resolution," he said.