Elon Musk limits Russia in Ukraine battlefront: the trick is in the speed
Kyiv and the tech billionaire strike new ground rules as satellite internet becomes a key weapon in modern warfare.
Ukraine’s defense minister, Mykhailo Fedorov, said Sunday that efforts to block unauthorized access by the Russian military to the satellite internet system are producing “real results,” according to CNN. After Russia attacked a Ukrainian train using drones controlled via the internet network operated by Elon Musk’s space startup, SpaceX, the South African-born billionaire and Tesla CEO has found his relationship with the Kremlin under renewed strain.
The US company has responded to what it described as unauthorized use, denying Russian troops in Ukraine access to its communications system. Ukrainian armed forces say the move has already begun to have an impact on the front lines. Russian units reportedly lost control of their communications, giving Kyiv a temporary advantage. Even so, restrictions on Kremlin forces have not yet been fully implemented. Fedorov said Ukraine worked with SpaceX to take initial steps aimed at countering Russian drones.
Musk vows technical fix as Kyiv relies on Starlink
In addition to the defense minister’s public statements, Musk posted messages on X warning that the company intended to find a technical solution. Disabling the communications system across Ukraine is not an option. The Ukrainian high command depends heavily on Starlink to maintain its digital command structures.
As reported by the German outlet Welt, Fedorov contacted the company directly, and together they agreed on two key measures.
“Unverified terminals will be deactivated”
To disrupt Russian troops’ access to the satellite communications system, Fedorov said the first step would be to “implement a system that will allow only authorized terminals to operate within Ukrainian territory.” Users in the country will begin receiving instructions to register their Starlink terminals for verification. “Unverified terminals will be deactivated,” he added.
Beyond that measure, SpaceX has introduced a new method to prevent Kremlin forces from accessing its network if verification alone proves insufficient. The solution lies in a speed cap: any user traveling faster than 70 kilometers per hour – roughly 43.5 miles per hour – will lose their connection. As a result, drones that manage to bypass the verification barrier will lose all communication through Starlink once they exceed the set limit.
Military bloggers in Russia, posting on Telegram, claim the restrictions imposed by Musk’s team have had a significant impact. The rollout of the new measures has hampered communication between front-line units, as Russian logistics had relied in part on Starlink connections.
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