In connection with Elon Musk's blocking of the Internet from Starlink, Ukraine began to search for alternative ways to ensure communication and carry out precise strikes on Russian military facilities in the occupied territory of Crimea and other regions.
Starlink satellite communication systems have been actively used by the military since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. However, the owner of the Starlink company, Elon Musk, repeatedly blocked the system for the Ukrainian military, making it impossible to use it in Crimea. However, Ukraine was looking for alternatives, and probably found them.
As "Suspilne" reports, the commander of the Unmanned Systems Forces, Vadym Sukharevsky, said that Ukraine expects a positive result and is currently conducting a dialogue with the supplier regarding the delivery of alternative systems that are functionally similar to Starlink.
"A whole working group on dialogue has been created. There is an alternative, yes. The dialogue is ongoing, and, let's say, we expect a positive result," Sukharevskyi said, but did not specify the name of the Starlink alternative.
We will remind that on October 7, 2022, the Ukrainian military reported problems with the use of Starlink in the combat zone, in particular in the Luhansk, Donetsk and Kharkiv regions.
On February 9, Space X restricted Starlink communications, stating that Ukraine should not use the system as a weapon, particularly to control drones. Later, Musk explained such restrictions by the fact that Space X is trying to prevent the start of World War III.
In addition, in September 2023, Musk secretly disabled Starlink to prevent Ukrainian forces from attacking the Russian fleet in Crimea.