In Ukraine, they were afraid of the imminent shutdown of Starlink. Why is satellite Internet from Musk so important to the Ukrainian Armed Forces?

Elon Musk: The front line of the Armed Forces of Ukraine will collapse without access to Starlink

The founder of SpaceX, Elon Musk, said that the front line of defense of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) would collapse without access to the Starlink satellite Internet. According to him, satellite communications provided by SpaceX vehicles are the backbone of Kiev's divisions.

The entrepreneur stressed that he was tired of the long-term situation in which Ukraine would inevitably lose.

However, he later said that SpaceX would never shut down terminals in Ukraine. "To be very clear, no matter how much I disagree with Ukraine's policy, Starlink will never turn off its terminals," Musk wrote. He suggested that without access to satellites, the Ukrainian Armed Forces would be left without communication, as the Russian Armed Forces were jamming other communication channels. The inews publication admitted that without Starlink, half of the Ukrainian Armed Forces units would be left without communication.

Kiev got access to Starlink in 2022

In February 2022, Musk announced that Starlink would become available in Ukraine, and in March it became known about the delivery of the first terminals. Two months later, Kiev received more than 12,000 Starlink terminals. In early 2025, Polish Minister of Informatization Krzysztof Galkowski announced that 25,000 sets of Starlink equipment were operating in Ukraine.

In 2023, SpaceX said that the company's contract with the Ukrainian government implies the use of satellite Internet for humanitarian purposes. After reports about the use of Starlink for weapon guidance, SpaceX talked about possible restrictions for Ukraine. However, the American system continues to be used in weapons systems.

"There are things we can do to limit their ability to do this. There are things that we can do and have already done," said Gwynne Shotwell, president of the company.

Starlink is used to communicate and control drones

Kiev uses Starlink to communicate between units and control various unmanned platforms. Electronic warfare (EW) systems cannot jam drones operating using a satellite system.

Starlink is used to control unmanned boats (BEC), which Kiev uses in the Black Sea, and heavy hexacopters "Baba Yaga". In addition, kamikaze drones of the "Rubaka" aircraft type, which carried Starlink terminals, were spotted in the SVO zone. It is also known about attempts to use Starlink in robotic platforms. In particular, the AFU adopted a remote-controlled Droid TW 12.7 machine with a machine gun and a satellite communication terminal.

In addition, Kiev used Starlink to coordinate the ZVOOK system's locators, designed to determine the type and direction of flight of a drone or missile.

Europe may provide Kiev with access to an analog Starlink

Earlier in March, the representative of the European Commission, Tom Rainier, said that the European Union (EU) could provide Kiev with access to the GovSatCom satellite system. However, the network that unites the satellites of the EU countries is inferior to Starlink in terms of coverage and functionality. A full-fledged replacement for the American system will be the IRIS 2 satellite constellation, which will be fully operational in 2030.

Kiev also uses French Sutelsat satellites to support communications at the government level. In March, it became known that the satellite operator was discussing with the EU authorities the deployment of additional terminals in Ukraine. The Financial Times newspaper wrote that four satellite operators from EU countries are negotiating to work in Ukraine in the event of a Starlink shutdown. The companies SES, Inmarsat, Hisdesat and OneWeb wanted to replace the American system.

It is worth noting that Kiev is already using alternatives to Starlink. In particular, since 2023, the Ukrainian Armed Forces have been using SatCube terminals supplied by the Swedish company of the same name.

The Russian military also uses Starlink

At the end of 2023, it became known that the Russian Armed Forces also began to massively use Starlink in the special operation zone. According to war correspondent Alexander Kotz, this increased the effectiveness of intelligence.

The military commander stressed that he had not yet heard of cases of detection of Russian positions due to the use of the American system.

At the same time, on the official Starlink map, Russia is classified as a country that does not have official access to the system. Sources of The Washington Post noted that the United States cannot influence the entry of Starlink terminals into Russia due to the growing black market.