A fire at a Starlink ground station in central Poland was a deliberate “act of sabotage” aimed at cutting internet links used by Ukraine’s military, Polish Deputy Prime Minister and Digital Affairs Minister Krzysztof Gawkowski said in remarks reported on 24 September 2026 by the BBC. The blaze broke out the previous Wednesday night at a state-owned satellite station the BBC placed in Wola Krobowska, in Poland’s Masovian Voivodeship province.
The same day, Denmark’s Defence Intelligence Service published a threat assessment saying it expects Russia to escalate hybrid attacks against NATO and the West in the coming months, according to the Irish Times.
Key facts
- The fire engulfed the station’s power system and backup generator, and the site was operating normally again, Gawkowski told reporters, as reported by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
- Outlook India reported the station sits near Grójec in the Mazowieckie region and is run by Exatel, a state-owned telecommunications company.
- Denmark’s service warned of “a low but growing risk” of a limited Russian military attack on one or more NATO countries bordering Russia, according to the BBC.
Why it matters
Gawkowski said the station transmits internet traffic through Poland to countries including Ukraine and uses SpaceX systems that provide connectivity via Starlink terminals, the BBC reported. Outlook India explained that Starlink terminals connect users to satellites and then to ground stations, which link that traffic to the wider internet. By that description, the equipment the fire destroyed sat in the ground segment rather than in orbit; the wider reading that ground stations are the physically exposed link in a satellite internet network is this article’s framing, not an assessment attributed to any of the officials quoted.
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported that Ukraine’s military relies on tens of thousands of Starlink terminals for battlefield communications and some drone operations, and Gawkowski said disrupting the Polish station could affect connectivity for institutions and the Ukrainian military, per Outlook India. For Ukrainian users the stake is the continuity of satellite internet service they already have rather than new capacity: Outlook India reported no major interruption to internet services, and the Australian Broadcasting Corporation said Poland has stated previously that it pays for Ukraine’s Starlink subscription. Starlink-News covered who controls access to Starlink in Ukraine separately, after a Ukrainian presidential adviser said no one would disconnect the service.
Sabotage or accident: officials differ
The accounts do not line up on how firmly the cause has been settled. The BBC, the Irish Times and the Australian Broadcasting Corporation all reported Gawkowski describing the fire as sabotage. Outlook India reported that Polish authorities were still investigating it as possible sabotage, that the Internal Security Agency was leading the inquiry, and that investigators were also examining whether an electrical fault started the blaze. Gawkowski said responsibility had not been established, but that “many signs suggest this aligns with Russia’s new doctrine of attack,” per the Irish Times.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, asked about the incident at a news conference with Bulgaria’s leader, said he disliked “labelling something as sabotage versus an accident without 100% certainty, but it looks bad,” according to the BBC. Gawkowski, citing Tusk, said that even with the station operational the episode is an element of hybrid warfare, the Irish Times reported. Police later made progress on the case, including two Turkish nationals detained in Germany over the Polish station fire.
What Denmark’s intelligence service said
The Danish Defence Intelligence Service said Russia would carry out more frequent attacks against the West and NATO “with greater consequences for the countries targeted than in the past,” the Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported. The Irish Times said the assessment listed destructive cyberattacks that cripple societal functions and sabotage attacks carrying a high risk of casualties.
Scenarios the assessment sets out
Intelligence chief Thomas Ahrenkiel said possible actions include isolated long-range drone or missile strikes on infrastructure supporting Ukraine, false-flag operations using Ukrainian-made drones, or deploying a limited number of troops into a NATO border area under the pretext of protecting Russian minorities, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported. “The aim is not to take over the country, but to divide NATO,” he said.
The service judged an outright Russian invasion of a NATO country “highly unlikely” but said it “cannot be ruled out,” per the Irish Times, which added the assessment warned Russia might test NATO’s Article 5 if it believed members would not respond collectively. A separate statement from the Danish Resilience Agency said destructive Russian cyberattacks against Denmark were likely and raised its threat level, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
Background: a run of infrastructure incidents
Poland has been on heightened alert for sabotage since Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported. Outlook India noted that in April Poland’s National Prosecutor’s Office said it had charged five people over sabotage and terrorist offences allegedly carried out for Russian intelligence, in a case covering arson and planned attacks in Poland and other European countries.
Earlier in September, Germany publicly blamed Russia for an attempted drone attack on Leipzig/Halle Airport, and France ordered a plan to protect critical infrastructure and defence industry sites, the BBC reported. Germany has separately raised concerns about Russian satellites shadowing Starlink spacecraft.
The BBC also reported that Moldova’s president said four Russian drones crossed into its airspace with at least one exploding, Romania’s defence ministry said a drone crashed on its territory, and Poland said a Russian military helicopter briefly violated its airspace. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said earlier in the month that it was Europe talking about preparing for war, the BBC reported.
Frequently Asked Questions
Has Ukraine said whether the fire disrupted its services?
No. The Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported that Ukraine has not publicly commented on whether the fire caused any disruption on its side.
When did Starlink start operating over Ukraine?
Elon Musk activated Starlink over Ukraine in 2022 after Kyiv appealed for help in the first days of Russia’s full-scale invasion, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
How has Moscow responded to the sabotage claims?
The BBC reported that the Kremlin had not commented on the Polish fire. The Australian Broadcasting Corporation noted that Moscow has repeatedly denied any involvement in hybrid warfare or sabotage in NATO countries, and the BBC reported that President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly said Russia does not plan to attack NATO states.
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