Russia Routinely Jams UK Military Satellites, Allies Act

Maj Gen Paul Tedman, head of UK Space Command, warned Russia is routinely targeting and attempting to jam British military satellites on a “weekly” or “reasonably persistent” basis using spaceborne payloads that shadow and collect data as well as ground‑based jamming. The UK operates about six dedicated military satellites equipped with counter‑jamming technology, but officials say interference has increased since Russia’s full‑scale invasion of Ukraine and mirrors warnings from Germany that Moscow has been shadowing their military satellites. Tedman and other officials also warned that Russia and China have tested anti‑satellite weapons and that satellites can be jammed, blinded, manipulated or kinetically disrupted amid rising orbital congestion. In response, the UK and US have stepped up allied cooperation, including a coordinated September manoeuvre under Operation Olympic Defender in which a US satellite inspected a UK satellite. The UK plans major investments in integrated air, missile and space defences, and officials say the threat now combines growing capability—especially from China—with greater Russian willingness to use counter‑space systems, prompting heightened readiness and international cooperation.