Russian military propagandists acknowledge that Ukraine’s new defense minister has set in motion steps that are significantly hampering Russia’s forces.
Russian military channels are sounding the alarm: according to military channels, Ukraine’s new Defense Minister, Mykhailo Fedorov, “is staging a true revolution on the battlefield.”
The pro-Kremlin channel “Archangel of Spetsnaz” says Fedorov has begun cutting off a technology critical to Russian troops and has launched a crackdown on Russian forces’ use of Starlink. This pertains not only to drones, the channel says, but also to the so-called “field internet” that underpins command-and-control and strike coordination.
“Archangel of Spetsnaz” writes about this with clear irritation, conceding that the Ukrainian side is moving quickly and effectively.
After Ukraine’s Defense Ministry reached out to SpaceX, Elon Musk’s company promptly imposed restrictions on terminals that could be used by Russian forces. Musk publicly confirmed the measures worked, and Fedorov responded that Ukraine is already working with SpaceX on “the next important steps.”
“If they cut it off, we’re done”
The reaction from Russian military bloggers has been especially telling. One of them previously admitted that after enemy terminals were disabled in one sector, “complete informational chaos” ensued and commanders had to urgently restore communications.
In effect, Russia has been caught in a bind: without Starlink, its drones are blind and deaf - and the army has no alternative.
Experts note that targeting the “field internet” is even more important than destroying the drones themselves. Without connectivity, UAVs become useless metal, and command over troops descends into chaos.
Elon Musk says measures to stop Russia’s unauthorized use of Starlink on strike drones have produced tangible results.
The SpaceX CEO publicly confirmed steps were taken to prevent the Russian military in Ukraine from using Starlink satellite communications. On February 1, he replied on X to Ukrainian Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov’s account:
“Looks like the steps we took to stop the unauthorized use of Starlink by Russia have worked. Let us know if more needs to be done,” Musk wrote.
Fedorov thanked Musk for the support and said the first results are already visible in practice. “The first steps are already delivering real results. We are working very closely with your team on the next important steps. Thank you for standing with us. You are a true champion of freedom and a true friend of the Ukrainian people,” the minister wrote.
