Published time: March 18, 2015 18:17
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One of the UK's most advanced military satellites will be
repositioned over the Asia-Pacific region to provide secure communications to
Britain's allies in the region, a defense minister has announced.
The Skynet 5A satellite is owned and operated by the global
arms firm Airbus Defence and Space.
Skynet is a family of military communications satellites, now operated byAstrium
Services on behalf of the UK Ministry of Defence, which
provide strategic communication services to the three branches of the British Armed Forces and to NATO forces
engaged on coalition tasks. The satellites were operated by Paradigm Secure Communications until
October 2012 when the organisation was rebranded to Astrium Services.
The “hardened” satellites orbit earth in a “constellation” composed
of eight separate units, providing the Ministry of Defence (MoD) with all its
global “Beyond Line Of Sight” (BLOS) communications capacity.
In a statement published on the MoD website, Defence
Minister Phillip Dunne said: “Today’s announcement that Airbus will be
moving one of the UK’s Skynet 5 satellites to the eastern Asia-Pacific region
is clear proof of how much our relationships with our international allies
matter.
“This is the first time that we have had a secure
communications capability in the region, and shows the depth of our commitment
to our allies and partners in the region, including Malaysia, in humanitarian
and peacekeeping operations.”
The MoD explained the system, which is part of a “private
contract initiative,” is also intended for use by international partners.
“NATO and other allied governments are able to use Skynet
services to augment their existing communication services.
“It is intended that the Skynet satellite will be in
position by the middle of 2015.”
The scheme will include a new ground base in Australia and
comes at a time when talk of the Western strategic reorientation towards an
increasingly powerful China – known as the“pivot to Asia” – has become a
key issue in international politics.
The repositioning was announced at a major arms convention
taking place in Malaysia this month.
This year's Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace
(LIMA) jamboree includes exhibits by British defense companies such as BAE
Systems and Rolls Royce.
“A range of world leading British technologies are being
exhibited at LIMA as the United Kingdom looks to strengthen industrial ties
with Malaysia in the defense and security sectors,” the MoD said.
The British arms industry came under scrutiny earlier this
month when a two-day Security Policing Conference and Exhibition was hosted in
Farnborough, Hampshire, with the press and public explicitly excluded.
The event, organized by the Home Office, came as Britain
reportedly approved the sale of £16 million worth of anti-riot equipment,
including tear gas and rubber bullets, to countries on its own human-rights
blacklist.
Critics say the British government is prioritizing profits
over human rights. The Campaign Against the Arms Trade (CAAT) said the
Farnborough event would focus on the sale and promotion of military wares
commonly deployed for “state repression.”