Ukraine slams SpaceX for cutting Starlink internet access while Russians launch brutal attacks
WASHINGTON — Ukrainian officials were enraged Wednesday after Elon Musk’s SpaceX limited Kyiv’s access to its Starlink satellite service without warning, disrupting combat drone operations while Russian forces launched a fresh round of attacks on civilian targets.The throttling capped the velocity of Ukrainian drones at 100 miles per hour, with a source familiar with the situation telling The Post: “This makes the operation of UAVs, airplanes, and helicopters at high speeds impossible, which will also impact efforts to counter [Russian] Shahed drones within Ukraine.“It will affect our defense operations, logistics, etc., mid-strikes,” the person added.
“This will also give Russians a real leverage on a front line at the time when we effectively stopped their advances, and de-occupy the territories.”“Our defense forces did not receive a warning about this limitation, and this led to the disruption of several missions,” presidential adviser Serhiy Beskrestnov complained on Telegram.Ukraine’s military has long relied on Starlink access — for which Poland pays some $50 million per year — to defend its territory against Russian strikes.Separately, President Trump has repeatedly pressured Kyiv to stop striking Russian energy targets, for which Ukraine uses separate technology, citing spiking global energy prices.Following a call with Russian President Vladimir Putin last week, Trump announced a deal to import hundreds of thousands of tons of Moscow’s diesel to ease prices at home.Trump also blasted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and suggested that his countrymen should select a new leader.SpaceX boss Elon Musk later echoed those sentiments, posting on X Saturday that “Zelensky has gone too far.”“I agree, time for Ukraine to get a new leader,” he added Sunday.Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski lashed out at Musk in response Wednesday, posting on X: “Hey, @elonmusk, big man, are you playing politics with your pro...