China and Russia have a secret 'no limit' pact to eliminate Elon Musk's Starlink at all cost, researchers claim | Tech Radar

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China and Russia have a secret 'no limit' pact to eliminate Elon Musk's Starlink at all cost, researchers claim

The enemy of my satellite-based enemy is my friend?

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A joint Insider/Der Spiegel/Le Monde investigation published leaked documents showing a Chinese-authored, three-level plan to contain and defeat Starlink

The plan, presented to Russian officers at a secret forum in 2023, highlights a three-level approach to contain and destroy Space X's Starlink

A separately signed June 2023 Moscow protocol also commits Russia and China to jointly build a hypersonic-missile-defense system based on technology Russia had never before been willing to share, even with allies

Starlink is the world's largest satellite constellation ever built, and as a result, it also doubles as the backbone for many civilian and military communications channels.

With approximately 10,400 satellites in low-Earth orbit as of June 2026, Space X's low-Earth-orbit satellite internet network covers nearly 160 different countries and territories while delivering low-latency communications (20-40 milliseconds) that often make it a better choice than GEO systems that have a baked-in round trip delay of 500-700 milliseconds.

Its potential for military use, until recently, was downplayed by many in the industry, but it has formed the backbone for communications for Ukraine in the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war earning it the ire of the Russian government and renewed focus from China, which has already covertly begun to prepare for an eventuality where it would have to disable the network.

A secret meeting that highlighted growing Chinese-Russian military co-operation

With China affirming that its 'no limits' partnership with Russia is still very much in play as early as 2025, a year-long investigation spearheaded by The Insider, Germany's Der Spiegel, and France's Le Monde indicates that both players may have already considerably broadened its scope beyond what was visible earlier, especially when it came to their respective military ambitions.

Starlink, which Russians consider a key hindrance to their campaign in Ukraine, forms the backbone of the latter's communications even as the former are cut off from access as the conflict continues to evolve in what is now the 5th year of fighting.

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For China, it represents a growing threat, underscored by the US military's increasing reliance on Space X, which is not only the Pentagon's most important space contractor but also helps the US government deploy and service its military-grade version of Starlink: Starshield.

Chinese military officials and engineers met with Russian officers in November 2023 at a summit in Guangzhou to discuss how to tackle Starlink, presenting a 3-pronged plan of action: diplomatic pressure, jamming, then cyberattacks, and, alternatively, physical destruction.

Not only would both China and Russia aim to leverage their considerable weight in diplomatic forums to hinder Starlink's growth by imposing regulatory pressures, but they would also invest in electromagnetic-jamming infrastructure to render existing satellites useless in certain geographic areas, even as they collaborated within each other's ecosystems.

Perhaps more troubling for Elon Musk and Space X would be the cyberwarfare and physical warfare component, where plans to leverage "access spoofing, virus infection, and the exploitation of vulnerabilities" meet plans to "eliminate" satellites already in orbit altogether.

Given that these plans were first discussed in 2023, one can assume they have evolved considerably since then, even as drone warfare, laser-based weaponry, and anti-satellite missiles have made major inroads, as modern militaries prepare for asymmetric warfare in future conflicts.

Researchers show how Russian satellites can jam GPS across Europe

Space Force has a new weapon to target enemy satellites

Space X could be planning to offer a Starlink mobile network for consumers

For example, Chinese researchers at the Northwest Institute of Nuclear Technology in Xi'an have reportedly built a ground-based microwave weapon capable of targeting low-orbit satellites, as per local media

With China and Russia also agreeing to deploy an air-defense solution as part of the "Working Protocol" signed in Moscow, which is expected to dwarf existing capabilities, including Russia's S-500, the revelations indicate that China is not passively but rather actively supporting Russia in its ongoing endeavors.

This makes for a tricky subject to broach for Elon Musk and a White House that backs him: the former has taken a conciliatory stance toward China even as Tesla depends on the market for sales, houses its largest and most efficient plant, and has previously resulted in favorable lease terms and loans in play from the Chinese government, while the latter might tip his hand based on 'national security' concerns that could make for an uncomfortable situation much like how it has played out for Nvidia after Beijing intervened.

Starlink might be an important piece of the pie for both the US government and Elon Musk, but the response from both to Chinese plans for the service might considerably differ as a result, given what is at stake for both entities.

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Having built hundreds of gaming PCs and being an avid gamer in his spare time, Rahim tends to have stronger opinions about hardware than most. This is particularly on display when he gets his way with powerful, but minimalistic RGB builds even as Small Form Factor (SFF) PCs come a close second.

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