The British military has reportedly been jamming or blocking satellites from other countries as a defensive measure against hostile threats. A defence source indicated that the RAF has been utilising a ground-based system for this purpose over the past year, which has already been deployed "to deter our adversaries".
This system could potentially prevent hostile nations' satellites from tracking the movements of UK nuclear-armed submarines or other sensitive military operations, such as those involving special forces.
The development coincides with the head of the RAF stating that the UK faces "unprecedented threats" from adversaries in space. In response, a new RAF unit, the Space Effects Squadron, has been created to defend Britain's satellites. The Ministry of Defence (MoD) stated that this squadron will focus on "disrupting, degrading and denying hostile threats in space".
Defence Secretary Wes Streeting, speaking on Wednesday, highlighted the daily reliance on satellites for technologies such as mobile phones and banking apps. He warned that the loss of GPS alone would cost the UK economy £1.4bn a day, underscoring that "Our dependency on space is precisely why it is increasingly under threat from our adversaries."