Former Ukraine official calls for stricter restrictions on Russian use of Starlink

Kateryna Chernohorenko, previously Ukraine’s deputy minister of defense, during her fireside chat with Space Exchange Global’s Duncan McKenize on May 26. Credit: SpaceNews

AMSTERDAM – A former senior Ukrainian defense official called on SpaceX to tighten controls on Starlink terminals that she said are reaching Russian forces through third-party countries or intermediaries.

Kateryna Chernohorenko, Ukraine’s deputy minister of defense from 2022 to 2025, told SpaceNews during the SmallSat Europe conference that “companies like SpaceX need to be more precise in how they sell terminals to end users connected to the Russian Federation.”

SpaceX does not offer Starlink service in Russia, though the satellite internet service has been used by both Russian and Ukrainian forces throughout the war, especially to coordinate drone strikes.

“Russia works through allied countries, for example Kazakhstan, which can be used as a proxy for Starlink terminals. SpaceX needs to verify who the end users are and where those terminals are operating at all times.”