Musk Cuts Off Starlink, Leaving Russian Forces Facing Communications Blackout

"90% of deployed units lose communications links"
Scrambling to secure walkie-talkie radios

Reports have emerged that Russian forces, who had been illegally using Starlink satellite internet during the war in Ukraine, suddenly faced a communications blackout due to an abrupt service shutdown.

On February 7, Yonhap News cited the UK daily The Telegraph, stating that after the Starlink service, owned by Elon Musk, was suspended, about 90% of Russian military units deployed on the front lines lost their communications connectivity. This shutdown was implemented through negotiations between Ukrainian Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov and Musk. The joint response came after evidence emerged that Russian troops had attached Starlink terminals to long-range drones for precision strikes, prompting Minister Fedorov and Musk to take coordinated action.

Starlink has introduced a "whitelist" system, allowing only terminals approved by the Ukrainian government to access the service. Additionally, the service is configured to automatically disconnect devices moving at speeds above 75 km/h, effectively blocking the Russian military from using Starlink on high-speed drones or missiles. Until now, Russian forces had secretly brought in Starlink terminals via third countries and used them in occupied territories by exploiting the Ukrainian network. The Russian military had become highly dependent on Starlink, with reports that even cavalry units used the system, and the sudden cutoff has left them in a state of panic.

A Russian military blogger pleaded, "Terminals have been blocked on almost all fronts, making command and control impossible," and appealed for donations of outdated walkie-talkie radios.

Experts believe that this measure will provide significant support to Ukraine. However, they also noted that the shutdown had the side effect of disabling some Ukrainian terminals as well. The anonymous Russian military blogger "Military Informant" assessed that the move could set the Russian military back several years. Rob Lee, Senior Fellow at the Foreign Policy Research Institute (FPRI) in the United States, commented, "The Russian military's ability to operate ground unmanned robots and carry out medium-range missile strikes will be severely degraded."

Russia Seeks Alternatives Such as Its Own Low-Earth Orbit Satellites

However, some analysts point out that it is unclear how long the blockade will be effective, as Russia is developing its own low-Earth orbit satellite communication network and seeking workarounds such as cellular modems equipped with Ukrainian SIM cards.

Serhiy Kuzan, Chairman of the Ukrainian Center for Security Cooperation, stated, "The Russian military may look for alternatives such as wireless communications or fiber optic cables, but these are far less stable and much more vulnerable than Starlink," adding, "This blockade will directly impact the enemy's battlefield operations and drone missions."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.