Ukraine said Elon Musk’s SpaceX had restricted Starlink services on Wednesday, hampering the country's attack and air-defense drone missions as worsening ties with Washington fuel concerns over US battlefield support.
Russia launched more missiles and drones at Ukrainian cities, knocking out power to hundreds of thousands in attacks President Volodymyr Zelenskiy called “ostentatious disrespect” for US President Donald Trump’s call for an energy ceasefire.
Trump turned on Zelenskiy after lifting sanctions on Russian diesel under pressure to curb fuel prices that have soared since the US war with Iran began. He told Kyiv to stop attacking Russian refineries and urged Ukrainians to replace Zelenskiy.
"It's painful when President Trump chooses one side, not our side," Zelenskiy told "Piers Morgan Uncensored". He said he was OK with Trump being in the middle of Ukraine and Russia, but "if you are in the middle, you have to stay in the middle."
Asked about the restriction on the military version of SpaceX's Starlink services in Ukraine, Zelenskiy said: "It's a big mistake. ... This decision will bring a lot of human losses." He did not say who was responsible.
Musk, the CEO of SpaceX, which operates Starlink, said that all speeds of the system were controlled by the US government and military.
"Any limits on speed or usage are decided by the US military and ultimately POTUS," Musk wrote on the social media platform X, using the acronym for president of the United States. Musk is a close political ally of Trump's.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Sources have told Reuters and other media that the US has threatened to cut off intelligence for early warning of missile strikes on Ukraine, to press Kyiv to suspend attacks on Russian oil refineries.
Ukrainian officials said late on Tuesday they had received no warnings from Western partners for a second day before Russian missiles hit the capital. Trump had insisted on Tuesday that Washington was still sharing intelligence.
In comments posted on Telegram after his talks in London with British Prime Minister Andy Burnham, Zelenskiy said: "It is clear that the Russians are trying to take advantage of the problems with Starlink in Ukraine as the operation of interceptor drones largely depends on that connection."
Burnham announced the planned delivery of £45 million ($59.6 million) of surface-to-air missiles used to target jet-powered Russian drones, with £10 million of that package fast-tracked to meet an urgent need in Ukraine.
Trump said at the weekend that Ukraine and Russia both agreed to halt attacks on energy targets, although neither side confirmed this and intensive Russian bombing over the last two days included Ukrainian power stations.
After a night of bombardment of the capital Kyiv, Russian strikes continued throughout the day on Wednesday with six people killed in the western city of Lutsk, where the regional governor said a warehouse and a residential building were hit.
Ukraine, for its part, continued long-range strikes on Russia, hitting Russia's biggest data center, although it says it is holding back from hitting energy targets for now to show respect for Trump.
NO WARNING BEFORE STARLINK CUTS
Ukrainian military officials said Musk's SpaceX had without warning started to interrupt functioning of its military-grade terminals when they are moving at high speed.
Kyiv installs SpaceX receptors in many of its drones as part of their onboard guidance systems. The terminals operate across Ukraine, including in territory held by Russian forces.
"Our defense forces did not receive a warning about this limitation, and this led to the disruption of several missions," presidential adviser Serhiy Beskrestnov wrote on Telegram, saying the restriction affected Starshield, SpaceX's military and intelligence service.
The speed cutoff hampers Ukraine's ability to conduct strikes on Russian targets inside Ukraine, or to defend itself from Russian drones using its own interceptor drones, according to a Defense Ministry source and another military source.
Beskrestnov said SpaceX had imposed a speed limit of 160 kph (100 mph). The Defense Ministry source told Reuters military units had reported guidance systems losing their connections at speeds of less than half that.
The Defense Ministry source said Ukraine was in contact with the company as well as the US government and NATO to seek clarification over the sudden limitations.
The suggestion that Musk's company had limited Ukrainian military capabilities drew a sharp response from Poland, which pays for Ukrainian Starlink subscriptions on Kyiv's behalf.
"Hey, @elonmusk, big man, are you playing politics with your products again?" Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski asked Musk on X. "As your European customers, we are watching you."
There was no immediate response from Musk, who in the past has called Sikorski a "small man".
Shares in European satellite operator Eutelsat, which is seen as Europe's best shot at taking on Starlink, jumped on Wednesday as some investors bet that European providers could benefit from growing strains between Washington and Kyiv.
NO WARNING AHEAD OF MISSILES
Rescue workers in Kyiv were stretchering the injured from the wreckage of a blasted-out residential building overnight, while firefighters battled a huge blaze in the darkness. Officials said two people were killed and 21 wounded at the site.
Some 600,000 people were left without power as Russian missiles struck power stations during hours of attacks that primarily targeted Kyiv and Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city.
Russia's Defense Ministry confirmed it had struck four power plants in and around Kyiv and two in Kharkiv, among other targets. Zelenskiy said 30 energy facilities were damaged.
Zelenskiy cast the latest Russian attacks as a deliberate snub to Trump's declaration of a ceasefire on energy targets.
"Russia does not consider the American President's statements strong," Zelenskiy wrote on X. "The strike was entirely deliberate and demonstrative in its scale – Russia has never before shown such ostentatious disrespect toward the United States."
