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 products again? As your European customers, we are watching you.”
Wednesday’s throttling came after Russia lobbed ballistic missiles at Ukraine without warning for the second night in a row.
Historically, the US has tipped off Ukraine about incoming ballistic missile attacks.
“It’s so unfortunate that this has coincided with the glitches (as we were told) in getting early warning about ballistic missile attacks from our partners,” The Post’s source said in response to the latest bombardment.
Russia attacked Ukraine with 39 ballistic missiles and more than 120 drones, including a missile that hit energy infrastructure, according to Zelensky.
The attacks left some 600,000 people without power, according to Ukraine’s president.
“We ask America and EVERYONE in the world who does not turn a blind eye to reality to respond – and to respond forcefully. Russia has squandered the opportunity for de-escalation and has clearly chosen to continue its insane war of annihilation,” Zelensky pleaded on X following the latest Russian strikes.
“I am grateful to everyone who helps Ukraine! Peace can only come through strength, and we ask America to remember this principle of [Ronald] Reagan’s.”
The Ukrainians currently have a contract with Starlink through May 15, 2027, and have contacted the company for information about the apparent throttling, according to the source.
