Using China and Russia as excuses, the Japanese military may fully use "Starlink" and "Starlink" next year | Japanese military

Japan's Yomiuri Shimbun reported on the 25th, citing government sources, that the Japanese military is testing the "Star Link" satellite Internet service of the US space exploration technology company. If the performance is confirmed, Japan plans to fully utilize the Starlink network in the military in the next fiscal year starting in April 2024.

Civilian to military expansion

"Star Link" is the next generation satellite network launched by SpaceX in 2018, which aims to provide broadband Internet access for remote and rural areas around the world. It consists of thousands of small satellites orbiting near Earth orbit. As of May this year, the Star Chain has over 4000 satellites in orbit and plans to expand to 42000 in the future. In the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the communication network used by the Ukrainian military was exactly the "star chain".

According to Japanese media reports, the Japanese Ministry of Defense signed a contract with agents providing "Starlink" services in March this year to distribute communication equipment such as antennas to the Land, Sea, and Air Self Defense Forces, and test communication performance in more than 10 areas covered by "Starlink" services, including bases and garrisons. If the performance is confirmed, Japan plans to fully utilize the Starlink network in the military in the next fiscal year starting in April 2024.

In fact, as early as September 2021, KDDI, a Japanese telecommunications company, signed a contract with a low Earth orbit operator to provide high-speed Internet connections for remote islands and mountains in Japan through the satellites of American companies. In October 2022, SpaceX founder Musk confirmed that Japan became the first country in Asia to use Starlink services. But overall, at that time, "star chain" communication technology was still mainly concentrated in the civilian field.

Now, if the "Star Chain" service is widely used in the Japanese Self Defense Force, it will mark the expansion of this technology to military scope.

At present, Japan's independently developed X-band communication satellite is operating in geostationary orbit. If the "star chain" is adopted, it will mark the first time that the Japanese Self Defense Force has used foreign private satellites in low Earth orbit.

The advantage of using "Starlink" is that it can reduce the risk of communication paralysis caused by a single communication satellite failure - "Starlink" consists of multiple small satellites forming a "constellation", which can continue to operate even if some of them fail or are damaged.

Talking about China and Russia

At the same time as Yomiuri Shimbun reported that the Self Defense Force was testing the Starlink, the report also found an excuse for Japan to use this service - given that "China and Russia are strengthening their ability to attack satellites.".

According to Japanese media, on the Russian Ukrainian battlefield, the Ukrainian army was attacked by the Russian army, resulting in communication barriers, but Starlink can still provide communication support. The report suggests that China and Russia have devices to interfere with satellite radio waves from the ground, while Japan's use of "Starlink" services can ensure that communication services are not affected.

Observers believe that in recent years, the United States and the West have repeatedly portrayed the so-called "space threat" from China and Russia. The commander of the US Space Force Command announced in May 2021 that China and Russia have developed weapons capable of paralyzing or destroying US satellites, and that China's space capabilities pose an urgent threat to the United States.

Regarding this, Chinese Ministry of National Defense spokesperson Tan Kefei has stated that a prominent feature of such statements is that they treat viewpoints as facts and hypotheses as conclusions. Its true purpose is nothing more than to establish a "hypothetical enemy" first, and then pretend to be a "victim" to create excuses for expanding space armament and seeking absolute advantage.

Japan and the United States Strengthening Space Cooperation

The outside world has noticed that as the world's attention is focused on the Ukraine crisis, Japan is vigorously shifting its strategic approach of "defending itself". A prominent feature is the deepening of cooperation with the United States in areas such as space technology, data connectivity, and intelligence sharing.

Last year, the Japanese Ministry of Defense planned to merge space and cyber warfare forces into the Space Network Defense Group, promoting the integration of cutting-edge military technology and intelligence information. At that time, foreign media analysis said that Japan might enhance the situation awareness and communication capabilities of the Self Defense Forces by cooperating with the United States to develop a low orbit satellite Internet system similar to the "Star Chain".

At the same time, the Japanese military may also strengthen data connections with the United States after adopting the "Star Chain". Last year, the Japanese Ministry of Defense announced that it would join the United States led "Indo Pacific Ocean Situation Awareness Partnership" framework, and multiple countries would share satellite image data as agreed. At the beginning of this year, Japan announced the deepening of cooperation with the United States in the space field, and the United States will further protect Japan's satellite security.

The Japanese government also announced the launch of 50 small intelligence satellites in batches starting from 2024, establishing Japan's own "reconnaissance satellite cluster". This plan, known as the "Japanese version of the Starchain" by public opinion, can be used for gathering intelligence and tracking hypersonic weapons from China and Russia. At present, the Japanese Self Defense Force has established the "Japan US Joint Intelligence Analysis Organization" with the US military to strengthen the space monitoring capabilities of both sides. From a functional perspective, the "Japanese version of the Star Chain" clearly goes beyond the scope of defense.

Analysis has pointed out that in the current period of global turmoil and change, Japan's hope for the new generation of satellite communication systems is to meet the urgent needs of the Self Defense Force in cooperating with the US military to participate in overseas intervention, cross regional deployment in case of "surrounding issues", and instant communication when the battlefield unfolds. In this situation, it is not surprising that Japan is seeking new satellite communication methods, including satellite links, from the United States.