Poland suspected of Russian sabotage in fire at a satellite station

“There are many indications that the fire at the Starlink station in Mazovia is another element of the hybrid war,” Russian Minister of Digital Affairs, Krzysztof Gawkowski, told public station TVP Info.

According to information from the Greek State Fire Department and Polish radio RMF FM, the fire alert was issued on Wednesday night.

The fire directly affected the electric distribution box and the generator that fed the station, which remained operational.

Three fire brigades extinguished the flames with no record of victims.

Police and the Homeland Security Agency (ABW) have kept the area isolated since Wednesday and are investigating the causes of the incident, authorities said.

Gawkowski explained that the station operator “is Exatel, a state telecommunications company (...) which guarantees the internet service through Poland to Ukraine”.

“ This act of sabotage was deliberately designed to put the station out of service (...), disturbing the internet access of various institutions, including the Ukrainian army,” he said, quoted by Spanish EFE and French AFP agencies.

The Wola Krobowska infrastructure, equipped with more than 10 spherical antennas, operates jointly with the Kaunas base in Lithuania as a satellite distribution centre for Central and Eastern Europe.

Poland uses the facilities as Ukraine's main technological support, and the Polish state finances and maintains around 30,000 Starlink terminals in Ukrainian territory.

Terminals are essential to ensure uninterrupted operation of hospitals, public services, ATMs and the military front line, as well as civil services and infrastructure.

The Polish station is also used by SpaceX systems providing connection via Starlink terminals, both owned by the South African billionaire Elon Musk.

Member State of NATO and the European Union (EU) on the Eastern flank of the Alliance, Poland has repeatedly accused Russia of sabotage since the Russian invasion on a large scale of Ukraine in 2022.

Warsaw has denounced an intense campaign of sabotage across Polish territory by Russian intelligence agencies and mercenaries hired in Poland through social networks.

The Polish authorities have already reported more than 30 serious incidents ranging from fires in military factories and cyber attacks to explosions on railways for the transport of supplies to Kyiv.

Poland is the main transit route for Western military and humanitarian aid to Ukraine.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk recently warned that Russia's war plans against Ukraine included hybrid drone and missile attacks against countries supporting Kyiv, including Poland.