Katerina Chernovol23:08, 05/09/24

The Pentagon spokesman is confident that Russia will continue to try to find ways to use Starlink and other commercial communications systems.

Pentagon officials are working with Elon Musk’s SpaceX to prevent the Russian military from using unauthorized Starlink Internet terminals on the battlefield in Ukraine.

Bloomberg writes about this with reference to John Plum, head of the space policy department of the US Department of Defense. It is noted that in this matter the United States is “actively cooperating with the government of Ukraine and SpaceX.”

“At this point we have been successful in countering Russian use [of Starlink], but I am confident that Russia will continue to try to find ways to use Starlink and other commercial communications systems. This will continue to be a problem, I think we have dealt with it and found good solutions as with Starlink and with Ukraine,” he said in an interview with Bloomberg News.

However, Plumb declined to go into detail about what methods or procedures are being used to curb Russia’s use of portable communications terminals that connect to SpaceX’s fleet of low-orbit satellites. Representatives of the Ukrainian government also did not comment.

The publication notes that Starlink terminals are still advertised for sale in Russia on platforms such as the Ozon e-commerce site. The sellers claim that they operate on a subscription basis issued in the name of residents of European countries where the technology is licensed.

Mikhail Fedorov, Ukraine’s minister of digital transformation, said that by May 2022, Ukraine had received 10,000 Starlink terminals, which provide critical communications in the war against Russian invaders. The Pentagon subsequently awarded SpaceX a $23 million, one-year contract that ends this month.

When asked about the status of the contract, space policy spokesman Omar Villarreal said they were working to extend it until November.

Use of Starlink during the war

As you know, from the first months of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, our country has been using Starlink terminals. They help both the military at the front and have been installed more than once in cities liberated from the occupiers so that people can contact their relatives.

Recently, the head of the Ministry of Digital Development, Mikhail Fedorov, announced that Poland will continue to pay for the work of more than 20 thousand Starlink terminals, which it transferred to Ukraine.

(C)UNIAN 2024