Air Assault Forces (DSHV) Commander Oleh Apostol, during a meeting with journalists, commented on the prospects of the Russian satellite communication system that Moscow is developing as an analogue to the Western Starlink platform. According to him, Russia will continue its attempts to deploy its own system, but the project will likely take more time to implement than originally planned.
Technological difficulties
Responding to questions about how close the aggressor state is to creating a competitive satellite infrastructure, Apostol noted that Russia is experiencing technological difficulties in implementing the relevant project. The commander emphasized that these very limitations dictate the pace at which Moscow can approach its goals in the field of military satellite communications.
"A matter of time"
At the same time, Apostol did not rule out that Russian specialists would eventually manage to achieve the intended results. "I think it is a matter of time. They will push it through. Not as fast as they would like," he said, pointing to the gap between Moscow's expectations and the real timelines dictated by technological capabilities.
"Rassvet": what is known about the system
Recall that according to Reuters, Russia is already using its own "Rassvet" satellite system for military communications over the territory of Ukraine. The Russian "Rassvet" project was launched on July 19 from the Plesetsk cosmodrome as part of the second batch of satellites. In September, it was reported that this batch failed to reach the required operating altitude, which further confirms the existence of technical problems in the system.
Strategic context
Developing its own satellite segment is of strategic importance for Moscow, as it allows it to reduce dependence on foreign communication channels during the conflict. Who is behind the creation of the Russian Starlink analogue and what weaknesses the system has is analyzed in detail in the RBK-Ukraine article, on which the DSHV commander relies in his assessments.
