Musk steps in - SpaceX blocks Starlink use on Russian drones

Authored by newsukraine.rbc.ua and submitted by jackytheblade

He made such a statement in comments under a post by Ukraine's Minister of Defense, Mykhailo Fedorov, on X .

American businessman Elon Musk announced that he has taken measures to stop the unauthorized use of Starlink satellite internet by Russian forces.

"Let us know if more needs to be done," Musk wrote.

Fedorov responded that the initial actions are already showing noticeable results. He added that Ukraine continues to work closely with the SpaceX team.

"We are working very closely with your team on the next important steps. Thank you for standing with us," the defense minister wrote.

On January 23, media reports indicated that Russian forces have increasingly been using Starlink on strike drones, attempting to bypass Ukraine’s air defense systems.

In particular, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) reported that the Russians are installing Starlink on their Molniya-2 strike drones.

On the same day, Mykhailo Fedorov stated that the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine promptly contacted SpaceX to address the issue.

Later, the minister’s technology advisor, Serhiy Beskrestnov, said that at Ukraine's request, SpaceX had begun implementing initial countermeasures to prevent Russians from using Starlink terminals to carry out drone attacks on Ukraine.

At the same time, in recent months, there have been interruptions in Starlink service at the front. In September, for example, connectivity issues were reported along almost the entire front line.

GoneSilent on February 1st, 2026 at 11:07 UTC »

It blocked moving starlinks in Ukraine above 70-90kmh unless whitelisted. Ukraine also also been dealing with the Russian drones that use Ukraine cell networks. Ukraine does the same inside Russia and the Russian fix is to shut off the cell networks.

WeirdJack49 on February 1st, 2026 at 10:59 UTC »

Musk is in the Epstein Files > Musk must do something to polish his Image.

MilkEnvironmental106 on February 1st, 2026 at 10:45 UTC »

If anything this is musk stepping out. He's been a enabling them the entire time.