Kyiv made its fastest battlefield gain in 2.5 years, taking advantage of Starlink cut for Russian forces

Ukrainian soldiers before assignments on the frontline, at an undisclosed location near Kostyantynivka, in the Donetsk region. Photo / Handout, the 93rd Kholodnyi Yar Separate Mechanised Brigade via AFP

Ukraine recaptured 201sq km from Russia between Wednesday and Sunday local time last week, taking advantage of a Starlink shutdown for Russian forces, according to an AFP analysis of data from the Institute for the Study of War (ISW).

The recaptured area is almost equivalent to the Russian gains for the entire month of December and is the most land retaken by Kyiv’s forces in such a short period since a June 2023 counter-offensive.

These 201sq km include areas that Kyiv and military analysts say are controlled by Russia (72sq km), as well as those claimed by Moscow’s Army (129sq km).

“These Ukrainian counterattacks are likely leveraging the recent block on Russian forces’ access to Starlink, which Russian milbloggers [military bloggers] have claimed is causing communications and command and control issues on the battlefield,” the ISW, which collaborates with the Critical Threats Project, another United States think-tank, stated.

On February 5, military observers noted disruption of the Starlink antennas used by Moscow on the front lines, following announcements by Elon Musk of “measures” to end the Kremlin’s use of this technology.

Kyiv claimed that Russian drones were using them, in particular, to circumvent electronic jamming systems and strike their targets with precision.

Without the use of Starlink, owned by Musk’s SpaceX, Russian forces only advanced on February 9, with Kyiv gaining ground on the other days.

The recaptured land is concentrated mainly around 80km east of the city of Zaporizhzhia, in an area where Russian troops have made significant progress since the summer of 2025.

Moscow controlled 19.5% of Ukrainian territory, either fully or partially, in mid-February, compared with 18.6% a year earlier.

Approximately 7% - Crimea and part of the Donbas - was already under Russian control before the invasion launched in February 2022.

-Agence France-Presse