Defense One: Russia uses SpaceX Starlink satellite Ilon Mask in Ukraine throughout the front

Ukrainian sources of Defense One note that Russians can easily purchase Starlink abroad, and then transfer to their military.

The Pentagon spokesman Jeff Jurgensen said that American officials are aware of these messages, but redirected questions to "our Ukrainian partners in order to get any current operational information about this kind of satellite communication."

SpaceX is able to prevent the use of Starlink devices in the territory occupied by Russia. However, the senior researcher at the Hudson Institute Brian Clark believes that Russian troops can hide Starlink from SpaceX.

Russia can simply “give the GPS false signal to the Starlink terminal to think that the user is located in the territory controlled by Ukraine,” Clark said. Clark also supported the idea that Ukraine can determine whether Russia uses Starlink, since the terminal signals can be identified using signaling equipment equipment.

According to the professor of Texas University in Austin Todd Humphris, SpaceX may also not decide to tightly control the location of Starlink. Considering that Ukrainian troops are sometimes attacked against Russia, SpaceX may “be afraid that the error in determining the front line can leave Ukraine without Starlink,” he said.

Commercial versions of Starlink, for example, used in Ukraine, cost $ 599 for equipment and $ 120 for a monthly subscription.

In September 2023, as The Insider wrote , Elon Musk said that he could not launch the satellite Internet Starlink in the Crimea due to US sanctions.