Starlink is getting dragged into Russia's hybrid war against the West

Starlink is being drawn into Russia's shadow war against the West.

Dmytro Smolienko/Ukrinform/NurPhoto Elon Musk's Starlink service is being drawn into Russia's campaign of hybrid operations in Europe.

There have been several attacks against Starlink infrastructure across Europe in recent weeks.

SpaceX's lucrative connectivity business has become a military and political target.

Elon Musk and SpaceX have gotten caught up in very public battles over Starlink's role in the war in Ukraine, but they're also being drawn into another, less visible conflict: Russia's shadowy campaign of hybrid operations against the West.

The past few weeks have seen attacks and attempted sabotage against Starlink infrastructure across Europe.

Western officials are blaming Russia for at least some of the incidents, and Ukrainian intelligence has warned that Moscow could ramp up these efforts.

Kęstutis Budrys, Lithuania's foreign minister, said on Sunday that a sabotage attempt targeting Starlink infrastructure near Vilnius was thwarted the previous night.

He said that the aim was to "undermine a capability critical" to Ukrainian defense and civilian communications.

Budrys characterized the incident as "a direct consequence of Russia's war" and later described the act as an element of Russian hybrid operations against Europe — sabotage, attacks, drone incursions, and other actions that Western officials have attributed to Moscow in recent years.

The Kremlin has repeatedly denied involvement.

Starlink infrastructure is a growing target.

The civilian satellite internet service and its military-grade variant are used by NATO and Ukraine for battlefield communications and operations .

Last week, Poland blamed Russian intelligence services for a sabotage incident in September — two Turkish citizens were arrested in connection with a fire at a Starlink satellite station near Warsaw.