1/ The near-simultaneous shutdown of Starlink and Telegram are having a massive impact on Russian forces in Ukraine, according to Russian warbloggers. They say that recent Ukrainian advances are a direct consequence of the problems that are being caused. ⬇️
2/ 'Two Majors' writes:
"[W]e can say that it was precisely the combined communication problems that have led to the localized Ukrainian Armed Forces offensives in the south of Kupyansk and in the Zaporizhzhia direction in recent days.
3/ "We didn't make this up; veterans from various parts of the front told us so.
Why are we so angry? Our people are dying there. Our comrades. And if our grumbling can make even a small difference, then it won't have been for nothing that we've all gathered here."
4/ Svyatoslav Golikov, writing on his 'Philologist in Ambush' channel, reports that "the Starlink shutdown had a very negative impact; people on the ground have been running around like crazy for the past two weeks, trying to find alternative domestic systems…
5/ …that simply aren't available in the quantities required by the active army, and now (suddenly!) have skyrocketed in price (everything for the front, everything for victory, yeah)."
6/ Meanwhile, the Russian government is in full 'anti-crisis' mode and is continuing to argue that the shutdown is no big deal, despite the dire reports from the front. Deputy Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation Alexey Krivoruchko has said:
7/ "The shutdown of Starlink terminals did not affect the command and communication systems of the troops of the units and formations in the special military operation zone. The existing command and control systems ensure a stable exchange of information via secure channels.
8/ "I would like to point out that the Starlink terminals have been disabled for two weeks, but this has not affected the intensity and effectiveness of unmanned systems, as confirmed by objective monitoring of enemy equipment and manpower losses."
9/ Valery Tishkov, Chief of the Main Communications Directorate of the Russian Armed Forces, has put forward a similar line:
10/ "The deployment of the troop command and control system is ensured by the use of all types of communications. The use of enemy communications equipment at the front was only used by individual units, primarily to mislead the enemy and to launch attacks into its depth.
11/ "Command post officials are provided with all modern domestically produced communications services. The combat command and control system is functioning reliably."
Golikov isn't having this. He argues:
12/ "Speaking about a formally regulated command and communication system in the troops, including from the standpoint of the requirements of the service for the protection of state secrets, Mr. Krivoruchko, incidentally, is not particularly disingenuous.
13/ "Here I will make a reference to the post of dear comrade Tretyakov (with a humorless, veiled sarcasm, in particular, I quote: "Command and communication itself is not mentioned, but the system is mentioned").
14/ "The nuance is that this very formally regulated system does not meet the modern requirements for providing troops with all the necessary types of communications and communication platforms.
15/ "Hence the widespread use of Starlinks to ensure uninterrupted satellite internet (as well as video broadcasts via Discord and the widespread use of Telegram).
16/ The deceit (to put it mildly) in this case is that Mr. Krivoruchko modestly remains silent about the actual state of communications in the combined arms structures, mentioning only the unmanned systems forces he oversees, despite the fact that his responsibilities as…
17/ …Deputy Minister of Defence include the organization of military-technical support for all of our Armed Forces.
18/ "But if Mr. Krivoruchko's words can be described as sly omissions, then Mr. Tishkov, in addition to equally sly maxims, also directly lied about certain units and misleading the enemy.
19/ "By the way, I'm embarrassed to ask, was [Khalil] Arslanov's 17 years and [Vadim] Shamarin's 7 years in a maximum-security penal colony [for corruption] also intended to mislead the enemy? Or did these individuals completely fail to implement digital communications?
20/ "And Mr. Tishkov himself, by any chance, would he care to explain why the hell the issue of mass satellite internet access in the armed forces has still not been resolved?
21/ "Or is this foreign contraption not included in the list of those regulated forms of communications, and the Russian soldier has no need for it, so he'll get by?
22/ "What is also touching is Mr. Tishkov's reference to command post officials. It's a classic example of building a pyramid of needs not from the foundation, but from the top, suspended in a benevolent vacuum. Bravo! And let them fuck around on the ground as they please.
23/ "In general, if we look at the combat control and communications system from a practical rather than a formal point of view, then there is nothing rosy about its stable functioning. /end
Sources:
t.me/dva_majors/883…
t.me/philologist_zo…
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