Ukraine regains about 400 km² of territory after disconnecting russia from Starlink - Bloomberg

Since the beginning of the year, the Ukrainian Defense Forces have regained control of approximately 400 square kilometers of territory. This became possible after thousands of Starlink satellite communication terminals used by russian troops were deactivated, Bloomberg reports, citing a report from the US Department of Defense’s Defense Intelligence Agency.

According to US intelligence, the occupying forces used the SpaceX terminals to coordinate their actions and launch drone strikes in areas where conventional communications were unreliable or easily jammed.

Efforts by Ukrainian officials in February to disable terminals illegally purchased by russia significantly, albeit temporarily, weakened the occupiers’ combat capabilities. A second blow to russian military communications was the kremlin’s decision to block the Telegram messaging app.

Following requests from the Ukrainian side, Elon Musk’s company SpaceX published instructions for the official registration of devices, which helped prevent their further use by the russian army.

On February 4, SpaceX blocked the operation of Starlink terminals on Ukrainian territory. Equipment not included on the so-called “whitelist” ceased to function.

This was done amid the russians’ active use of Starlink terminals in their strike drones. Starlink equipment allowed them to control drones, adjust flight paths, and select targets for attack in real time.

The very next day, February 5, it became known that the russian army on the front lines was experiencing problems with troop command due to the Starlink block. The occupiers had been actively using this equipment on the front lines for several years.

Also on February 5, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reported, citing its own sources in the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, that due to the blocking of Starlink, the russians had halted assaults on certain sections of the front.

As the Ukrainian News agency earlier reported, the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense had previously stated that the occupiers had begun searching for Ukrainians willing to register a Starlink terminal in exchange for monetary compensation.