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Musk’s SpaceX is building spy satellite network for US intelligence agency, sources say
SpaceX is building a network of hundreds of spy satellites under a classified contract with a U.S. intelligence agency, five sources familiar with the program said, demonstrating deepening ties between billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk’s space company and national security agencies.
The network is being built by SpaceX’s Starshield business unit under a $1.8 billion contract signed in 2021 with the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), an intelligence agency that manages spy satellites, the sources said.
The plans show the extent of SpaceX’s involvement in U.S. intelligence and military projects and illustrate a deeper Pentagon investment into vast, low-Earth orbiting satellite systems aimed at supporting ground forces.
If successful, the sources said the program would significantly advance the ability of the U.S. government and military to quickly spot potential targets almost anywhere on the globe.
The contract signals growing trust by the intelligence establishment of a company whose owner has clashed with the Biden administration and sparked controversy, opens new tab over the use of Starlink satellite connectivity in the Ukraine war, the sources said.
The Wall Street Journal reported, opens new tab in February the existence of a $1.8 billion classified Starshield contract with an unknown intelligence agency without detailing the purposes of the program.
Reuters reporting discloses for the first time that the SpaceX contract is for a powerful new spy system with hundreds of satellites bearing Earth-imaging capabilities that can operate as a swarm in low orbits, and that the spy agency that Musk’s company is working with is the NRO.
Reuters was unable to determine when the new network of satellites would come online and could not establish what other companies are part of the program with their own contracts.
SpaceX, the world’s largest satellite operator, did not respond to several requests for comment about the contract, its role in it and details on satellite launches. The Pentagon referred a request for comment to the NRO and SpaceX.
In a statement the NRO acknowledged its mission to develop a sophisticated satellite system and its partnerships with other government agencies, companies, research institutions and nations, but declined to comment on Reuters’ findings about the extent of SpaceX’s involvement in the effort.
“The National Reconnaissance Office is developing the most capable, diverse, and resilient space-based intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance system the world has ever seen,” a spokesperson said.
The satellites can track targets on the ground and share that data with U.S. intelligence and military officials, the sources said. In principle, that would enable the U.S. government to quickly capture continuous imagery of activities on the ground nearly anywhere on the globe, aiding intelligence and military operations, they added.
Roughly a dozen prototypes have been launched since 2020, among other satellites on SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rockets, three of the sources said.
A U.S. government database of objects in orbit shows several SpaceX missions having deployed satellites that neither the company nor the government have ever acknowledged. Two sources confirmed those to be prototypes for the Starshield network.
All the sources asked to remain anonymous because they were not authorized to discuss the U.S. government program.
The Pentagon is already a big SpaceX customer, using its Falcon 9 rockets to launch military payloads into space. Starshield’s first prototype satellite, launched in 2020, was part of a separate, roughly $200 million contract that helped position SpaceX for the subsequent $1.8 billion award, one of the sources said.
The planned Starshield network is separate from Starlink, SpaceX’s growing commercial broadband constellation that has about 5,500 satellites in space to provide near-global internet to consumers, companies and government agencies.
The classified constellation of spy satellites represents one of the U.S. government’s most sought-after capabilities in space because it is designed to offer the most persistent, pervasive and rapid coverage of activities on Earth.
“No one can hide,” one of the sources said of the system’s potential capability, when describing the network’s reach.
Musk, also the founder and CEO of Tesla (TSLA.O), opens new tab and owner of social media company X, has driven innovation in space but has caused frustration among some officials in the Biden administration because of his past control of Starlink in Ukraine, where Kyiv’s military uses it for secure communications in the conflict with Russia. That authority over Starlink in a war zone by Musk, and not the U.S. military, created tension between him and the US government.
A series of Reuters’ stories has detailed how Musk’s manufacturing operations, including at SpaceX, have harmed consumers and workers.
The Starshield network is part of intensifying competition between the U.S. and its rivals to become the dominant military power in space, in part by expanding spy satellite systems away from bulky, expensive spacecraft at higher orbits. Instead a vast, low-orbiting network can provide quicker and near-constant imaging of the Earth.
China also plans to start building its own satellite constellations, and the Pentagon has warned of space weapon threats from Russia, which could be capable of disabling entire satellite networks.
Starshield aims to be more resilient to attacks from sophisticated space powers.
The network is also intended to greatly expand the U.S. government’s remote-sensing capabilities and will consist of large satellites with imaging sensors, as well as a greater number of relay satellites that pass the imaging data and other communications across the network using inter-satellite lasers, two of the sources said.
The NRO includes personnel from the U.S. Space Force and CIA and provides classified satellite imagery for the Pentagon and other intelligence agencies.
The spy satellites will house sensors provided by another company, three of the sources said.
US President Joe Biden has expressed his nation’s full backing for Bangladesh and the interim government led by Muhammad Yunus during a bilateral meeting held on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York. This marks the first time in Bangladesh’s history that a US president has met with the country’s head of government at a UNGA session, as confirmed by a statement from the Chief Adviser’s Office.
In this unprecedented encounter, Chief Adviser Prof Yunus briefed President Biden on the significant sacrifices made by students who fought against the previous government, leading to the opportunity to rebuild the country. Prof Yunus underscored the importance of succeeding in this national rebuilding effort, calling for US cooperation in the process.
President Biden praised the students’ dedication, stating that their sacrifice calls for further commitment from all, including the US. During the meeting, Prof Yunus presented Biden with a copy of The Art of Triumph, a book featuring wall paintings by students and young revolutionaries.
Prof Yunus, on his first visit to the US as head of Bangladesh’s government, is attending the 79th UNGA, which runs from September 19 to 30. The theme of this year’s debate is “Leaving no one behind: acting together for the advancement of peace, sustainable development, and human dignity for present and future generations.”
Rare Diplomatic Meeting Signals Strengthened US-Bangladesh Ties
Speaking on the significance of the meeting, Chief Adviser’s Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam highlighted the rarity of such an engagement, noting that the US and Bangladesh already enjoy strong relations. “This meeting elevates our relationship to a new level,” Alam stated, as reported by local media.
Observers suggest that the bilateral meeting, which is uncommon for US presidents during the UNGA, signals Washington’s intention to support Bangladesh through its transitional period. Dhaka is hopeful that the encounter will lead to a new strategic partnership that enhances cooperation on multiple fronts.
Yunus Receives Warm Reception from Global Leaders
Earlier in the day, Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus was welcomed by several world leaders at a reception hosted by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. Held at the North Delegate Lounge in the UN headquarters, the event served to greet the leaders participating in the 79th session of the UNGA.
During the reception, Yunus exchanged greetings with Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Mauritian President Prithvirajsingh Roopun, and UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk, among others.
Yunus Meets Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau
On the sidelines of the UNGA, Chief Adviser Yunus also met with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. The two leaders discussed ways to enhance Bangladesh-Canada relations, focusing on fostering freedom, institution-building, and youth development in Bangladesh.
Prime Minister Trudeau commended Prof Yunus for taking on the leadership role and reiterated Canada’s willingness to support Bangladesh in strengthening its institutions. Prof Yunus, in turn, praised Canada for its enduring friendship and requested increased visa allocations for Bangladeshi students.
The chief adviser also gifted Trudeau The Art of Triumph, further highlighting the contributions of young revolutionaries. In addition to Trudeau, Yunus is scheduled to meet with the managing director of the IMF, the Italian prime minister, and will speak at the Clinton Global Initiative and Friends of Bangladesh events.
Environmental and rights groups urged the European Union Tuesday to label Malaysia’s Sarawak region “high risk” under controversial new anti-deforestation rules to be implemented from the end of December.
The EU’s deforestation regulation (EUDR) is due to come into force at the end of the year, although Germany and Brazil have recently joined a string of countries urging that implementation be delayed.
Environmentalists and rights groups have, however, called on the EU to move forward with the regulation.
It will bar imports of a vast range of goods — from coffee to cocoa, soy, timber, palm oil, cattle, printing paper and rubber — if they are produced on land that was deforested after December 2020.
It also requires exporters to assess the risk of rights violations associated with production of the commodity.
In a joint statement, a group of Malaysian and international organisations said Sarawak in Malaysian Borneo should be considered “high risk” under the new rules.
Such a designation would mean closer scrutiny of timber and palm oil imported from the region — an unwelcome prospect for Malaysia, which is already pushing back against EUDR.
The NGOs argue Sarawak’s government plans to convert hundreds of thousands of hectares of natural forest to timber plantations, and is granting companies operating leases in areas that have not been surveyed for protection purposes.
Earlier this year RimbaWatch, one of the signatory groups, warned that around 15 percent of Malaysia’s natural forest is at risk because of concessions granted to companies.
Tuesday’s statement also alleges routine violations of Indigenous land rights, including limits on the amount of land that can be legally recognised, and the unilateral revocation of existing land titles.
“Logging companies are still bulldozing Indigenous peoples’ forests in Sarawak without consultation or consent from communities, which should translate into a ‘high risk’ classification,” said Celine Lim, managing director of SAVE Rivers, an Indigenous organisation from Sarawak.
– Vocal opponents –
Sarawak’s forestry department, and Malaysia’s plantation and commodities ministry did not respond to AFP’s request for comment on the claims.
Malaysia and Indonesia have been among the most vocal opponents of EUDR, arguing domestic anti-deforestation standards should be sufficient, and warning the rules will disproportionately harm smallholder producers who cannot meet onerous documentation requirements.
Environmental and rights groups have pushed back against these claims, including at talks in Brussels earlier this month between EU, Indonesian and Malaysian officials.
“Calls from EU governments to delay enforcement of the law are a deplorable abdication of leadership in the face of a climate emergency,” said Luciana Tellez Chavez, senior
environment and human rights researcher at Human Rights Watch.
Marxist lawmaker Anura Kumara Dissanayake won Sri Lanka’s presidential election, the Election Commission announced Sunday, after voters rejected the old political guard that has been widely accused of pushing the South Asian nation toward economic ruin.
Dissanayake, whose pro-working class and anti-political elite campaigning made him popular among youth, secured victory over opposition leader Sajith Premadasa and incumbent liberal President Ranil Wickremesinghe, who took over the country two years ago after its economy hit bottom.
Dissanayake received 5,740,179 votes, followed by Premadasa with 4,530,902, Election Commission data showed.
The election held Saturday was crucial as the country seeks to recover from the worst economic crisis in its history and the resulting political upheaval.
“This achievement is not the result of any single person’s work, but the collective effort of hundreds of thousands of you. Your commitment has brought us this far, and for that, I am deeply grateful. This victory belongs to all of us,” Dissanayake said in a post on X.
The election was a virtual referendum on Wickremesinghe’s leadership of a fragile recovery, including restructuring Sri Lanka’s debt under an International Monetary Fund bailout program after it defaulted in 2022.
Dissanayake, 55, had said he would renegotiate the IMF deal to make austerity measures more bearable. Wickremesinghe had warned that any move to alter the basics of the agreement could delay the release of a fourth tranche of nearly $3 billion that is crucial to maintaining stability.
Neither candidate received more than 50% of the vote. Under the Sri Lankan election system that allows voters to select three candidates in the order of their preference, the top two are retained and the ballots of the eliminated candidates are checked for preferences given to either of the top two vote-getters. The one with the highest number of votes is declared the winner.
It was a strong showing for Dissanayake, who won just over 3% of votes in a previous presidential election in 2019, and suggests voters are fatigued with the old guard.
Dissanayake’s National People’s Power coalition is led by the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna, or People’s Liberation Front, a Marxist party that waged two unsuccessful armed insurrections in 1970s and 1980s to capture power through socialist revolution. After its defeat, the JVP entered democratic politics in 1994 and mostly played a key role in the opposition. However, they have supported several presidents and been part of governments briefly.
The NPP grouping also includes academics, civil society movements, artists, lawyers and students.
Dissanayake was first elected to Parliament in 2000 and briefly held the portfolio of agriculture and irrigation minister under then-President Chandrika Kumaratunga. He ran for president for the first time in 2019 and lost to Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who was ousted in a public protest over the economic crisis two years later.
Political analyst Jehan Perera said Dissanayake represented the spirit of the 2022 uprising during which angry Sri Lankans ousted Rajapaksa and called for a “system change” and “new faces in politics.”
Dissanayake’s immediate challenge would be to steady the economy “in the face of anxieties felt by business and financial groups about his Marxist and revolutionary background,” Perera said.
Wickremesinghe’s Foreign Minister Ali Sabry congratulated Dissanayake and said he hopes he will “lead with a commitment to transparency, integrity, and the long-term good of the country.”
The government announced Thursday that it passed the final hurdle in debt restructuring by reaching an agreement in principle with private bond holders. At the time of its default, Sri Lanka’s local and foreign debt totaled $83 billion. The government says it has now restructured more than $17 billion.
Despite a significant improvement in key economic figures, Sri Lankans are struggling with high taxes and living costs.
Sri Lanka’s economic crisis resulted largely from excessive borrowing on projects that did not generate revenue. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the government’s insistence on using scarce foreign reserves to prop up the currency, the rupee, contributed to the economy’s free fall.
The economic collapse brought a severe shortage of essentials such as medicine, food, cooking gas and fuel, with people spending days waiting in line to obtain them. It led to rioting in which protesters took over key buildings including the president’s house, his office and the prime minister’s office, forcing Rajapaksa to flee the country and resign.
The outgoing President Wickremesinghe was elected by a parliamentary vote in July 2022 to cover the remainder of Rajapaksa’s five-year term.
