The arson of antennas connected to the Starlink satellite system near Sofia may be an attempt to limit European internet traffic. This was commented on by cybersecurity expert Stanislav Atanasov on Euronews Bulgaria, emphasizing that the reasons for the incident must be established by the investigation.
„If I had to speculate - yes, it is an attempt to limit European internet traffic or to reduce the speed that can be used“, said Atanasov.
According to him, satellite internet does not rely only on satellites in orbit. Ground stations connect traffic from satellites to the terrestrial network, and therefore a failure in such a facility can affect data transmission, although the scale of the consequences depends on the specific infrastructure and available backup connections.
What has been confirmed about the arson near Sofia
According to BNT, two masked men set fire to 11 out of a total of 17 Starlink communication antennas at a facility near Sofia. The arson occurred in the early hours of October 10. The exact motives and the perpetrators of the actions have not been publicly announced.
The Secretary General of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Lyubomir Nikolov, announced that there are suspects, but refused to give details so as not to hinder the investigation. Prime Minister Rumen Radev said that the case is being worked on jointly with partner agencies. There is no official confirmation that the arson was part of a coordinated operation or was linked to a specific country.
Atanasov pointed out that a similar case occurred in Poland. On September 23, a fire broke out at a Starlink ground station in Wola Krobowska. The Polish Internal Security Agency later reported that it was a deliberate arson, and the investigation includes versions of sabotage and action in favor of foreign intelligence.
The connection with Starshield and the war in Ukraine
The expert explained that the Starshield military system uses similar infrastructure to Starlink, but is designed for military needs and is controlled by the US military and the Pentagon. In Ukraine, it provides battlefield communications, including for controlling drones and coordinating troop movements.
According to Atanasov, a permanent disruption of the service would hamper Ukrainian operations, as possible alternatives are likely to be slower and less reliable. He added that Europe does not yet have a satellite infrastructure comparable in scale to Starlink.
Atanasov pointed to OneWeb as a possible alternative, but noted that the network has more limited coverage and needs further development. The most difficult and expensive part of building such a system is launching the satellites into space.
“Information is life“, summed up the expert, according to whom rapid data transmission is crucial for both missile attack warnings and the coordination of military actions.
Sources: euronews.bg, bntnews.bg, nova.bg