Maxar denies Ukraine access to its satellite images
Pravda Ukraine
Militarnyi, a Ukrainian military news outlet, has cited sources as saying that the US aerospace company Maxar Technologies has denied Ukraine access to its satellite images.
Source: Militarnyi with reference to several unnamed users of the commercial service
Quote: “The official explanation provided by Maxar’s administration to users was that the restriction was made ‘in response to an administrative request’. In fact, the disconnection was due to a US government ban on sharing intelligence data with Ukraine.”
Details: Militarnyi noted that the Trump administration, through the Department of State, has thus banned American companies from providing Ukraine with satellite data and commercial services.
Militarnyi stressed that the ban applies to both government and private users.
It was reported that the Ukrainian cyber community Cyberboroshno had published a post on its Telegram channel about the closure of access to satellite intelligence.
It was not specified which services they were talking about. However, in the comments, they wrote about the withdrawal of access to the leading Maxar Technologies service which they used in their work.
As Militarnyi pointed out, Maxar Technologies is perhaps the main supplier of commercial satellite imagery for Ukrainian users, showing the movement of Russian troops and the damage to important facilities, both in the temporarily occupied territories and in Russia itself.
Maxar satellite imagery has also been used by the global media to illustrate and analyse the course of hostilities between Ukraine and Russia.
Background:
- A number of reputable foreign media outlets, citing sources, reported that the US had stopped exchanging intelligence information with Ukraine, including data on military targets and warnings of Russian missiles and drones being launched at Ukrainian territory.
- Experts at the Institute for the Study of War believe that the suspension of intelligence sharing between the US and Ukraine could significantly strengthen Russian air power, which has been severely limited by Ukrainian strikes on military targets in Russia’s rear. This could affect the course of combat actions by increasing the frequency and effectiveness of Russian air attacks.
- Ukrainian Defence Minister Rustem Umierov said that Ukraine had not yet received detailed information about the US restrictions on intelligence sharing, but that the authorities are already working on alternatives.
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