Overview

• Defence Minister Boris Pistorius said Russia’s Luch Olymp satellites are shadowing Intelsat spacecraft that carry traffic for the Bundeswehr and other users.
• Speaking at a Berlin space conference, he argued Russia and China have rapidly grown abilities to disrupt, blind, manipulate or destroy satellites.
• Pistorius called for discussions on developing offensive capabilities in orbit to strengthen deterrence.
• He announced Germany will invest about £31 billion in projects to harden and protect military space systems from attack.
• Recent context includes a U.S. assessment that a Russian satellite, believed to be Cosmos‑2576, was likely a counter‑space weapon placed in the same orbit as a U.S. government satellite, as well as allied warnings of increasing hostile activity in space.