Starlink is a 'major card' for Ukraine, soldiers say, but surprise restrictions show the risks of overreliance

The sudden disruption of Ukraine's military-grade Starlink access has exposed a key vulnerability.

Dmytro Smolienko via Reuters Connect Ukraine's access to military-grade Starlink services was suddenly disrupted this week.

Kyiv said the disruption affected critical Ukrainian drone operations.

Ukrainians say the incident exposes the risks of relying so heavily on a single communications platform.

The sudden disruption to Ukraine's access to military-grade Starlink services this week shows the risks of overly relying on any single platform, particularly one beyond Kyiv's control, for mission-critical battlefield communications, Ukrainian soldiers, officials, and defense companies told Business Insider.

With those risks front of mind, Ukrainians are working to diversify military-related communications platforms beyond Starlink.

Ukrainian officials and soldiers were surprised on Wednesday by an unexpected disruption to Starshield , SpaceX's dedicated satellite network for military services.

Defense ministry sources said speeds were restricted above 100 miles per hour, though some units experienced a loss of connectivity at speeds as low as 45 mph.

Services appeared to have been at least partially restored by Thursday.

The full extent of the disruption remains unclear, but the incident has left some Ukrainians feeling uneasy.

Yehor Cherniev, deputy chairman of the Ukrainian parliament's national security, defense, and intelligence committee, told Business Insider that the disruption underscores the risks of relying on a single communications platform.

He said Kyiv is working to diversify its sources, but declined to specify how.

Yuriy, an officer with Ukraine's National Guard, told Business Insider that his units use Starshield to support drone operations , and several missions were spoiled during the disruption.

He asked to be identified only by his first name for security purposes.