Russian army actively uses Starlink in war against Ukraine - ISW
The Russian army is trying to achieve technological parity with Ukraine (Illustrative photo: Getty Images)
Russian forces are employing illegally obtained Starlink terminals to enhance their combat coordination and the effectiveness of their tactical reconnaissance-strike complexes in Ukraine. In this way, the Russian army aims to achieve technological parity with the Ukrainian Armed Forces, according to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW).
Ukrainian servicemen operating in the Donetsk region told The Washington Post that Starlink terminals are increasingly appearing at Russian forward positions. According to them, the illegally obtained technology helps Russian troops address issues with combat coordination and communication, as well as improve the accuracy of fire from Russian tactical assets.
The commander of a Ukrainian drone platoon active near Novohrodivka (southeast of Pokrovsk) stated that Ukrainian reconnaissance drones began to frequently detect Starlink terminals at Russian positions in the area as of September 2024. He added that the emergence of the terminals coincided with a decrease in intercepted Russian radio transmissions, where Russian soldiers conveyed incomplete or inaccurate information to their commanders from the battlefield.
"Another Ukrainian soldier reportedly stated that Russian forces in the Pokrovsk direction appear to have enough Starlink terminals to give individual tactical groups their own terminal. Ukrainian soldiers reportedly credited recent Russian battlefield gains, including the Russian seizure of Vuhledar in late September 2024, partially to the Russian use of Starlink terminals," the report stated.
The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) also noted that to organize combat coordination and relay information about targets to fire and strike elements, Russian forces predominantly rely on radio and other unsecured communication technologies. At the same time, the Russians have yet to acquire modern battlefield management systems to organize their tactical reconnaissance-strike complexes (TRSCs), as many units of the Ukrainian Armed Forces have already done.
Ukraine's access to the Starlink system has provided its military with a technological advantage in conducting more effective combat coordination and implementing new developments in TRSCs ahead of Russian forces. The Russian army is likely attempting to neutralize these Ukrainian advantages by expanding its use of terminals.
"Ukraine is currently pursuing a strategy to offset Russian manpower and materiel advantages through technological innovation and adaptation, and technological parity between Ukrainian and Russian forces will undermine this effort," the ISW report stated.
Starlink terminals in the war in Ukraine
The Ukrainian army began receiving Starlink terminals at the start of the full-scale invasion. By August 2022, Ukraine had received 5,000 Starlink satellite internet stations from Poland.
Recently, Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski stated that the Starlink terminals obtained by Ukraine were funded by Warsaw, with Elon Musk having no involvement in this.
It has also come to light that the Russian forces have installed Starlink satellite communication systems in their Shahed strike drones. This allows the enemy to use the drones for reconnaissance as well.
