Russia uses 32 Rassvet satellites for operations in Ukraine
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Business Day (South Africa), TimesLIVE and Sowetan
Illustrative image · Magda Ehlers · Pexels · Licence PexelsRussia is already using 32 Rassvet satellites for military communications over Ukraine and to improve drone accuracy, according to TimesLIVE. The network, launched in two waves in March and July, remains insufficient for continuous coverage. Moscow plans further launches by the end of 2026 to gradually expand its coverage.
The Rassvet network could allow Russian drones to transmit data in real time and operators to adjust the trajectories of attack aircraft in flight, reducing their reliance on pre-programmed routes. This capability could also facilitate adaptation to target movements and the avoidance of air defences, Andrii Yusov, a spokesman for the GUR, said.
Mykola Zientsev, a security expert based in Kyiv, believes Rassvet is already affecting precision strikes carried out by Russian jet-powered drones. Russian forces would have at least two daily windows of high-quality satellite communications, each lasting more than an hour, according to a recent report by the expert.
Bureau 1440, coordinator of the Russian state-backed project, plans to build a constellation of more than 900 satellites by 2035. The GUR says 49 Russian and Belarusian companies are involved in the programme. Ukraine said it attacked the Progress space centre in Russia's Samara region in August, which produces rockets used to launch Rassvet satellites.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky imposed sanctions on 10 companies involved in the development of Rassvet, including Bureau 1440. Ukraine's chargé d'affaires in Washington, Denys Sienik, asked the United States to impose its own sanctions on companies in the programme. The US Treasury did not comment on the request.
