Ukrainian soldiers in combat have suddenly faced restrictions on their access to Starlink satellite internet terminals, managed by Elon Musk’s SpaceX. This development comes as the Trump administration has intensified pressure on Ukraine to immediately cease long-range strikes on Russia’s oil industry. The restrictions, implemented on Tuesday evening, have reportedly led to the failure of several combat missions, according to an adviser on military technology to Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Context
The sudden outage of Starlink terminals occurred as Russia launched ballistic missiles at Ukraine without any prior warning from the US for the second consecutive night. Historically, the US has provided Ukraine with intelligence regarding impending strikes. The terminals, which can travel at speeds exceeding 100 mph and utilize a military version of Starlink, lost connectivity in what appears to be a targeted outage aimed at disrupting military operations.
Developments
Serhiy Beskrestnov, a military technology adviser, stated:
“"Our armed forces did not receive a warning about these restrictions and this led to the failure of a number of missions. It’s clear that this action cannot be a coincidence and is connected to the current political situation."
