On Tuesday, Ukrainian Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov confirmed that The Russians equip drones with Starlink satellite systems. — We must react quickly, anticipate new threats and prevent situations that could harm the army, added the representative of the authorities in Kiev.
According to the American think tank Institute for the Study of War (ISW), the Russian unmanned systems unit Rubikon began using Molnya drones with Starlinks in December 2025.
Sikorski, referring to ISW's entry on this matter on Tuesday evening on the X platform, tagged Elon Musk and asked him in English “why he won't stop the Russians from using Starlinks to attack Ukrainian cities.” “Making money from war crimes can damage your brand” – emphasized the head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Elon Musk uses strong words
Although Musk did not respond directly to Sikorski, he did not leave the head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' entry unreacted. In response to an entry from one of the Internet users he called the Polish deputy prime minister a “salivating imbecile”.
The German weekly “Der Spiegel” reported on January 23 that the Russian army is increasingly using Starlinks in drone attacks against Ukraine. Reports about the installation of Starlinks on Russian combat drones were confirmed to “Spiegel” by the Ukrainian military intelligence (HUR).
On Monday, advisor to the Minister of Defense of Ukraine, Serhiy Beskrestnov, announced that Russian BM-35 strike drones equipped with the Starlink system can now reach the vicinity of the city of Dnipro. According to him, unlike Mołnia-type unmanned aerial vehicles, this type of drone is “fuel-based” and can cover distances of 500 km.
As the weekly noted, Russia is using Starlink to become independent from global satellite navigation systems, such as GPS and Galileo, which are susceptible to interference. Starlinks are more difficult to jam.
Radosław Sikorski vs. Elon Musk. This isn't the first time
The online malice of the head of the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the creator of Tesla has a long history. In March last year, when Radosław Sikorski reminded on the X platform that Poland was paying for Starlinks for Ukraine, he quickly received a retort.
See also: The brawl is heating up. Elon Musk insults Radosław Sikorski
“Be quiet, little man,” SpaceX CEO Elon Musk replied to him at the time.
“You pay a small fraction of the cost,” Musk wrote to the Polish politician. “And there is no substitute for the Starlink system,” added the head of SpaceX and a close associate of US President Donald Trump.
