The fire broke out on Wednesday evening at a Starlink ground station near the town of Grójec in the central Mazowieckie region, which includes the capital Warsaw.
Gawkowski said there were indications that it had been deliberately started to disrupt the station’s operations and was "another element of hybrid warfare."
The station is operated by Exatel, a state-owned telecommunications company, and serves as an internet hub for traffic passing through Poland, including internet services to Ukraine, Gawkowski said in an interview with broadcaster TVP Info.
He said disabling such stations could disrupt internet services and affect the operation of infrastructure such as ATMs.
"Sometimes we don't realise that such a telecommunications relay determines whether a part of Poland, Europe or Ukraine simply has internet access," Gawkowski said.
Starlink is a satellite internet service developed by SpaceX, the aerospace company run by US tech tycoon Elon Musk. Photo: Wikideas1, CC BY 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
He said the fire damaged the station’s power supply equipment and a generator.
"It is clearly visible that these acts of sabotage were targeted in such a way as to disable the station," Gawkowski said, adding that the apparent aim was to disrupt internet access, including for institutions and the Ukrainian military.
A Starlink terminal used by the Ukrainian army. Photo: Mil.gov.ua, CC BY 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
Gawkowski told TVP Info that it was too early to say whether Russia was behind the fire, but said the incident appeared to fit what he described as a new Russian approach to attacks.
"It won't be tanks or airplanes coming in here. Instead, we'll have actions aimed at shutting down the internet, making sure there is no water in the taps, no gas and no electricity," he said.
The Internal Security Agency (ABW), Poland’s main civilian intelligence service, is investigating the incident, Gawkowski said.
He said the suspected modus operandi involved arson at locations important to state infrastructure and acts of sabotage targeting critical infrastructure.
Gawkowski also said Polish security services had for months been working to prevent Russian infiltration, accusing Russia of sending or hiring people in Poland to collect information, photograph sites and identify critical infrastructure.
"We are dealing with a major wave of modern espionage, involving the infiltration of infrastructure, the collection of data and its subsequent use," he said.
Asked whether the fire had caused an interruption in internet access, Gawkowski said no critical disruption had been reported.
Deputy Interior Minister Maciej Duszczyk said on Thursday that authorities received the report of the fire late on Wednesday and immediately activated standard procedures for incidents involving critical infrastructure.
"Immediately after receiving information from firefighters, both police officers and ABW agents arrived," Duszczyk told broadcaster Tok FM.
He said authorities were treating the case seriously and were working to determine whether the fire was caused by an electrical short circuit or an act of sabotage.
Michał Maroszek, a spokesman for the State Fire Service in Grójec, said the fire broke out near an antenna installation operated by an information and telecommunications company in Wola Krobowska, in the Mazowieckie region.
The fire was reported shortly after 9 p.m. on Wednesday. Three fire crews were sent to the scene and found a fire involving the casing of a power supply box, Maroszek said.
Firefighters extinguished the blaze and secured the site. Police are investigating the cause of the fire, he said.
No one was injured.
Private radio broadcaster RMF FM was the first to report the incident.
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Source: IAR/PAP, TVP Info
Source: IAR, PAP
Click on the audio player above for a report by Marcin Matuszewski