Росія, ймовірно, купує супутникові фото у американських компаній для ударів по Україні, повідомляє The Atlantic з посиланням на українське військове джерело.
The journalists, citing a Ukrainian military source, write that Russia is conducting long-range strikes with cruise missiles, most likely using satellite imagery provided by American companies.
According to a military source, there is a certain pattern: a satellite takes pictures of a place, and a missile arrives there shortly afterward. Sometimes after that, another satellite takes additional images, probably to check the extent of the damage. According to the publication, these coincidences are hardly accidental.
The journalists also note that the Ukrainian Defense Ministry suspects that Russia buys satellite imagery from the United States through third-party companies.
“The number of coincidences where images are accompanied by impacts is too high to be random. Six months ago, we could not imagine that private companies could sell satellite images of this kind,” the source said.
The publication emphasizes that it is easier to acquire such images than it may seem.
The companies offer surprisingly fast turnaround times for work that costs several thousand dollars. Faster processing cycles and higher resolution increase the cost.
