Russia's recent blocking of Telegram is reportedly disrupting its military operations in Ukraine

"A decision to ban Telegram on home soil may have backfired on the Kremlin. Last week, Russia went on a blocking spree, banning a number of Western apps in an effort to push domestic users towards Max, an unencrypted state-owned app. One of the restricted apps was WhatsApp (which was also blocked) rival Telegram, a move that drew rare internal from soldiers and pro-war bloggers, with the army being heavily reliant on the cloud-based messaging service for communications."

"As reported by , pro-Russian military channels are now complaining that the sudden Telegram blackout - coupled with Elon Musk Russia's access to Starlink earlier this month - is now actively harming frontline operations. As well as being the messaging app of choice for millions of Russian civilians, soldiers also use Telegram to liaise directly on the battlefield. The government said last week that it was Telegram for violating national law, and that the decision was for the "protection of Russian citizens.""

"Bloomberg was told by senior European diplomats that the double blow of Telegram's sudden unavailability and SpaceX moving to block Russia's use of "unauthorized" Starlink terminals in Ukraine earlier this month has had a significant impact on Russian comms. Starlink's satellite coverage is particularly important for coordinating the Russian military's drone strikes, the frequency of which has been disrupted in recent weeks, giving Ukrainian forces an advantage."

Russia's ban on several Western apps, including Telegram and WhatsApp, aimed to push users toward the state-owned unencrypted app Max. The Telegram blackout triggered rare domestic pushback from soldiers and pro-war bloggers, as the Russian army relies heavily on the cloud-based messaging service for battlefield coordination. Concurrent restrictions on Starlink access have further disrupted Russian communications, degrading drone strike coordination and offensive tempo. European diplomats and frontline observers note a significant reduction in Russian operational capacity. A Ukrainian drone operator called Giovanni estimated roughly a fifty percent loss in offensive capability, leading to fewer assaults and tactical advantages for Ukrainian forces.

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