Technical measures to block Starlink satellite communication terminals illegally used by Russian forces on the front line have proven effective. SpaceX founder Elon Musk publicly confirmed the initial success in restricting the enemy's access to the network.
Commenting on the situation on social media platform X, Musk noted that the system is responding to unauthorized connection attempts by the Russians.
"Seemed like the steps we took to stop the unauthorized usage of Starlink by Russia worked. Let us know if there is more we can do," the American businessman wrote.
Ukraine's Minister of Defense Mykhailo Fedorov responded to Musk's statement. The official confirmed that joint efforts with the American corporation are bearing fruit on the battlefield.
"The first steps are already yielding real results. We are working closely with your team on the next important steps. Thank you for being with us. You are a true champion of freedom and a real friend of the Ukrainian people," Fedorov emphasized.
Details and consequences of these technical decisions were revealed by military communications expert and adviser to the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense, Serhii "Flash" Beskrestnov. According to him, SpaceX implemented restrictions at the direct request of the Ministry of Defense. The primary goal is to protect Ukrainian troops and infrastructure from enemy attack drones controlled via satellite uplinks.
At the same time, "Flash" warned that these "emergency measures" could result in temporary connectivity issues for Ukrainian Armed Forces personnel as well.
"I want to emphasize that the current solutions are temporary (or, to put it another way, emergency measures) and will be replaced by a global, well-thought-out solution that will take time," Beskrestnov explained.
"Flash" also urged the military to treat the situation with understanding. He noted that a mechanism is currently being worked out to collect data on all terminals to create a correct "friend-or-foe" recognition system. This aims to avoid blocking Ukrainian devices, particularly those provided by volunteers.
As a reminder, on January 24, Russian occupation forces struck helicopters in the Kropyvnytskyi area using Shahed-type drones. A distinct feature of this attack was the use of Starlink satellite terminals to control the drones in real-time.
