Russia Denies Military's Use Of Elon Musk's Starlink, Cites Lack Of Certification

The Russian government has recently refuted allegations of its military using Elon Musk‘s Starlink satellite internet service. This comes amidst ongoing military conflicts between Russia and Ukraine.

What Happened: The Kremlin has made it clear that Starlink is not certified for use in Russia and has not been officially provided to the country, as reported by Reuters on Monday. Therefore, Russian troops cannot be using the system.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov made these statements during a press briefing.

He said, “This is not a certified system with us; accordingly, it cannot be officially supplied here and is not officially supplied. Accordingly, it cannot be used officially in any way.”

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This denial comes after Ukraine claimed that Russian forces were using Starlink for military communications in the areas of Ukraine under their control. The Ukrainian defense ministry had stated that Starlink terminals were being used by units such as Russia’s 83rd Air Assault Brigade.

Why It Matters: The Kremlin’s denial follows a series of events related to Starlink and the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. Elon Musk also refuted allegations of SpaceX selling Starlink terminals to Russia. This denial was in response to claims from Ukraine’s military intelligence that Russian troops were using the terminals.

In a separate incident, Russia was reported to be targeting Starlink satellites by attaching signal jammers to its tanks. This tactic aimed to disrupt the satellite communications relied upon by Ukrainian drones.

These developments come in the wake of the European Union’s announcement of plans to develop its own satellite system to counter Starlink’s dominance. This decision was partly motivated by Starlink’s refusal to provide services to the Ukrainian military during the 2022 conflict with Russia.

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