Starlink outage hits Russian assaults: What’s happening on front line
Illustrative photo: Starlink outage hit the Russian command system (Getty Images)
The Russian army on the front line is experiencing major communication issues in its troops after unverified Starlink terminals were blocked in Ukraine, according to sources in the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
Sources in the General Staff confirmed that after the Starlink outage, Russian forces are facing major communication problems between units, as many of their communications relied on "grey" terminals.
At the same time, following the collapse of Russian Starlink access, the number of assaults along the front line has dropped significantly. As of 4:00 p.m. Kyiv time, the General Staff report recorded only 56 assaults, whereas normally, during the same period on any previous day, Russian assaults would be 1.5–2 times higher.
It appears that the Russian forces are simply unable to coordinate their actions via satellite communications. As a result, Russia has had to revert to "traditional" methods of troop command, including radio communication.
What happened to Russian Starlink
On the morning of February 5, it became known that unverified Starlink satellite terminals were blocked in Ukraine. Terminals included in the "white list" continue to operate, while all other terminals were blocked.
Within a few hours, Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense reported that the Starlink terminal blockade had caused serious problems for Russia. For the first time, it was noted that the number of assaults had dropped significantly due to the Russian forces losing communication with their units and overall chaos in their command system.
Since 2023, the Russian troops have actively used "grey" Starlink terminals on the front line. These terminals were acquired bypassing sanctions, "registered" to fake users, and in reality ended up in the hands of Russian forces at the front. The Russian army built an entire communication and military command infrastructure on these "grey" terminals at all levels.
Moreover, Russia amassed large stocks of "grey" terminals, buying them through shell companies and fake individuals around the world. Currently, all Russian Starlink terminals have been disabled, at least temporarily.
Why Russian terminals began to be blocked
Recently, Russian forces started carrying out attacks on Ukraine’s civilian population using strike drones equipped with Starlink terminals – allowing them to bypass Ukrainian air defenses and control drones "online."
After it was confirmed that Russia was using Starlink on drones to evade air defenses – specifically, installing Starlink on their Molniya-2 strike drones – Ukraine reached out to SpaceX founder and Starlink owner Elon Musk.
Musk responded quickly: initially, the speed of terminals was limited to 75–90 kilometers per hour, making it impossible to use Starlink for drones. Later, it became known that Ukraine implemented a "white list" mode.
How Starlink will work in Ukraine now
As is now clear, only devices on the "white list" will be able to operate in Ukraine. For security reasons, terminals will currently function in a stationary mode and with speed limits while in motion.
Anyone who completes verification will be able to use the service without restrictions. In particular, the Ministry of Defense emphasized that Ukrainian military personnel must quickly verify the Starlink terminals they use. Elon Musk himself even addressed Ukrainians, urging them to verify their devices.
