Ukraine has accused the United States of effectively assisting Russia by allegedly withholding alerts on incoming missile strikes and by reported changes to the Starlink satellite network that have disrupted Ukrainian military activity. President Volodymyr Zelensky urged Elon Musk, the US billionaire behind Starlink, to restore service levels after Kyiv reported slower connections affecting operations at the front.
Starlink disruption affects drone operations
Zelensky said he hoped the service problems resulted from an error rather than a deliberate decision. In remarks to British journalist Piers Morgan, he said: “I hope it is a mistake, perhaps a major technical issue. I do not know, but we are asking for it to be turned back on.”
- Former Ukrainian Defence Minister Mykhailo Fedorov subsequently said Starlink capability for speeds of up to 160 kilometres per hour was being reinstated.
- He said the restoration would allow both attack drones and interceptor drones to return to flight operations.
- Ukrainian defence officials said certain Starlink terminals had reportedly been slowed, blaming Washington for the restrictions.
- The terminals are used by Ukrainian troops for missions in Russian-occupied areas and for operating drones designed to intercept attacks.
Anger over US policy and intelligence warnings
Zelensky said he felt betrayed when questioned about President Donald Trump’s announcement of an arrangement to supply diesel to Moscow, despite the extensive sanctions still imposed on Russia.
“It hurts when President Trump picks a side that is not ours,” Zelensky said. “I believe his advisers are mistaken. I do not know who is directing him away from the correct side. This is not the right side of history.”
The Ukrainian president had already criticised allies for what he called an unfair failure to alert Kyiv before a succession of major Russian assaults late on Tuesday and early on Wednesday. He also charged that Russia had intentionally breached an energy ceasefire that Trump had announced unilaterally.
- A senior Ukrainian official said Washington had recently threatened to halt intelligence-sharing on Russian missile launches.
- Kyiv depends on that information to prepare for and respond to incoming attacks.
- Trump denied on Tuesday that his administration had taken such a step.
Kyiv sees link between attacks and restrictions
“It is clear that they, the United States, are helping Russia for some reason,” the senior official told reporters.
Sergiy Beskrestnov, an adviser to Zelensky, said the timing of the Russian attacks and the reported limits on Starlink service could not simply be treated as unrelated events.
Writing on Telegram, he said: “By their actions, our partners are taking away one of the few opportunities available to us to protect the country from jet-powered Shahed drones.”
