Russia is using Starlink satellite terminals and Iranian-produced Shahed drone equipped with SIM cards, says Yurii Ihnat, spokesperson for the Air Force Command of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Novyny.LIVE reports.
He noted that drone and aviation attacks are becoming more technologically advanced, requiring adaptation to new methods.
“Many innovations used by the Russians have already been identified—cameras, Starlink terminals, and even SIM cards. These are being examined by specialized institutions in our country to develop countermeasures. For us, these are targets that must be destroyed by all available means,” Ihnat stated.
He emphasized that air defense is working proactively, but forecasting attacks remains challenging. The priority, he said, is developing cost-effective and efficient ways to neutralize threats.
In 2024, the reports said Russian forces were widely using Starlink terminals acquired through a black market in the ongoing Russo-Ukrainian war.
Meanwhile, military experts say that Ukraine’s troops are highly dependent on US-made Starlink terminals. Recently, rumors have emerged that the US might cancel the access to its operations for Kyiv’s forces amid American aid suspension. Later, US billionaire Elon Musk, head of the US Government Efficiency Department and CEO of SpaceX, denied claims that his company considered a cutoff of its services.
On 11 March, Ukrainian air defense forces shot down a ballistic missile and 79 attack drones during a massive Russian overnight assault targeting 11 regions.
The Air Force reported that Russian forces launched an Iskander-M ballistic missile from the Taganrog area in Russia and 126 Shahed-type attack drones along with various decoy drones from multiple launch locations, including Oryol, Shatalovo, Millerovo, Kursk, Bryansk, and Primorsko-Akhtarsk in Russia.
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