In late March, **Bureau 1440** launched the first 16 broadband internet satellites of the new **Rassvet** constellation into low orbit. Observers and local media have already dubbed it the Russian answer to **SpaceX's Starlink**. It's an ambitious global internet project that experts say could conceal much broader strategic goals, with functions including military and communications control. The launch took place on March 23rd from the military's Plesetsk Cosmodrome using the Soyuz-2.1B launcher. This marked the first step in building an infrastructure expected to have at least 300 satellites by 2030. "The launch marks the transition from the experimental phase to the creation of a communication service," **Bureau 1440** announced on Telegram. "The **Bureau 1440** team completed this path in 1,000 days, which is the time between the launch of the experimental satellites and the production satellites." The project aims to provide broadband internet access with speeds up to 1 gigabit per second for each user terminal and a signal latency time of up to 70 milliseconds. # Gunning for It The dual-use nature of the **Rassvet** project is evident from some operational details. The launch was carried out by the Russian Defense Ministry through the Plesetsk Cosmodrome, not the **Roscosmos** space agency. Shortly after the launch, Russian President Vladimir Putin called the new constellation “a great event.” Roscosmos director Dmitry Bakanov stated that the Cosmodrome would suffer “attempted attacks” on the day of the launch. "Like all satellites intended for communications, they are also capable of military functions, and given the high effectiveness of **Starlink's** use on the battlefield, **Rassvet** will also find use there,” says Vitalij Egorov, a space expert and host of the YouTube channel Otkrytyj Kosmos Zelenogo Kota. [](https://www.youtube.com/@egorovkot) The size of the **Rassvet** terminals—several times larger and heavier than those in **Starlink**—may cause some limitations to the network, Egorov says. "Still, the fact that **Rassvet's** ‘private satellites’ were launched from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome shows the great interest the Russian Defense Ministry has in the success of this project. The Russian Ministry of Communications is also allocating funds for the project, which means that the state is directly participating in the **Rassvet** project." Independent Russian press reports funding for **Rassvet** of 100 billion rubles (about $1.34 billion) from the Russian Ministry of Communications, with the company reportedly ready to invest another 300 billion rubles. # Rassvet vs. Starlink "**Rassvet** satellites are similar to those of **Starlink**," Egorov says. "They are a constellation of satellites for internet transmission, but it would be more accurate to compare them more to the **OneWeb** system than to **Starlink**, because **Rassvet** is intended for commercial companies, state-owned companies, and government customers. In addition, **Rassvet** plans to reach … about 350 satellites by 2030, while **Starlink** already has thousands." The real challenge for **Bureau 1440**, then, will not be putting the first satellites into orbit but industrializing the system on a large scale, Egorov says. To get to a constellation of about 300 satellites in the next few years, the company would need to produce one or two satellites a week—a pace the Russian space industry has never achieved. So far, Egorov notes, only **Starlink** and **OneWeb** have been able to sustain such serial production. Another challenge concerns the development of lighter and cheaper terminals. Until an accessible and easily deployable infrastructure exists, it will be difficult to consider **Rassvet** a true equivalent of **Starlink**. Even by the most optimistic estimates, it will take years and dozens of launches before the network can offer stable coverage, even limited to Russian territory. Another difference concerns the orbital configuration. **Starlink** is primarily designed to provide coverage to the most densely populated areas. For this reason, the number of satellites transiting at high latitudes is relatively small. **Bureau 1440**, on the other hand, has chosen a near-polar orbit, with an inclination of 81.4 degrees. This means that the satellites will fly over the territory practically from south to north, covering the whole of Russia. The signal will be stable in both Crimea and Chukotka and polar areas, suggesting that the infrastructure is designed to serve institutional and corporate customers in remote or otherwise difficult-to-access regions. According to **Bureau 1440**, the constellation operates in low Earth orbit at an altitude of about 800 kilometers (around 500 miles), while **Starlink's** satellites are placed on orbits of about 550 kilometers (341 miles) or less. # Pulling the Strings As reported by **Novye Izvestija**, **Bureau 1440** was established in 2020 as a division of **Megafon**, then named **Megafon 1440** (1440 being the number of orbits completed around the Earth by the first artificial satellite, Sputnik 1 in 1957, before reentering the atmosphere in January of the following year). In 2022, the company changed its name and was incorporated into **Iks Holding**, which, as the independent **Dozhd** channel reports, would also be involved in developing surveillance systems and internet blockers. These are used in Russia to block online traffic and messaging platforms such as **WhatsApp** and **Telegram**. On security grounds, Moscow has begun blocking or severely slowing down internet and messaging platforms to disorient Ukrainian drones, limit free access to information for Russian citizens, and push users to the state-run Max messaging system, which allows authorities to access users' personal data. Finally, one of **Iks Holding's** top managers, **Dozhd** reports, is the son of Russia's first deputy director of intelligence, Boris Korolev, suggesting a direct link to the government. Experts say this detail reveals the true nature of the project better than any official statement: not just a constellation of satellites, but an infrastructure for digital sovereignty—and for the wars of the future, which will also be played out 500 miles above our heads.