Drones fall, strikes stall: How Musk's Starshield curbs hit Zelenskyy’s war effort

A disruption in the US military satellite internet service Starshield caused Ukrainian drones worth more than $1 million to fall from the sky and forced troops to halt almost all operations for three days, The New York Times reported, citing Ukrainian military commanders.A senior Ukrainian commander, identified only by his first name, Oleh, said dozens of armed drones were heading towards Russian military targets last week when their video feeds suddenly went fuzzy. The drones had lost their connection to ground-based pilots through Starshield, a Pentagon-funded satellite internet service, he said.Many of the drones crashed, costing his units more than $1 million worth of weaponry, according to the report.The development comes days after Donald Trump’s reported engagement with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin over efforts to end the war in Ukraine. The MAGA supremo also recently eased sanctions on Russian oil.Oleh said the disruption forced his units to suspend almost all operations for the next three days, including strikes on Russian command posts and fuel hubs. Such attacks help protect Ukrainian troops on the front lines and slow Russian advances, he said.

The reported disruptions have added to the growing tensions between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and US President Donald Trump. Ukrainian troops said connectivity had improved after a week, but problems persisted.The Trump administration has issued mixed statements on the issue, denying that any changes were made to satellite internet services in Ukraine while also saying that service had been restored.Ukrainian officials fear the disruptions were ordered to punish Kyiv for attacks on Russian oil refineries and pressure it into making concessions in the war. Ukraine has also reported gaps in US military intelligence sharing and delays in deliveries of American interceptor missiles. US officials have denied deliberately disrupting these services.

What is Starshield and how does it affect Ukraine?

Starshield is a military-grade satellite communications system developed by SpaceX, the company owned by Elon Musk. It is a more advanced sister system to Starlink, which is widely used by Ukrainian forces for communications and drone operations.European countries pay for Ukraine's access to Starshield. However, the advanced system is not available to all Ukrainian troops. Many units rely on it to operate drones while using standard Starlink connections for basic communications.Ukrainian officials have reported slowdowns affecting both Starshield and Starlink.Musk has said that Starshield is controlled by the Pentagon. However, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio added to the confusion when he said on Wednesday that SpaceX determined access to both Starlink and Starshield.According to Ukrainian officials, the initial disruption caused drones to lose their connections at speeds as low as 40 miles per hour. Connectivity has since improved, but drones reportedly continue to lose their connections when travelling faster than 100 miles per hour.While some drone models can operate at these lower speeds, others need to fly faster to hit their targets, the report said.The restrictions have also affected interceptor drones used to bring down Russian drones targeting Ukrainian cities, Zelenskyy said.Ukraine is now looking for alternative ways to operate its drones, fearing that satellite connectivity could be restricted again or cut off entirely. Military commanders said the search for alternatives was diverting soldiers' attention from battlefield operations.

US denies deliberately restricting satellite services

Ukrainian officials have sought clarification on who ordered the reported restrictions on Starshield and Starlink and why.A White House official told The New York Times that there had been no changes to satellite internet services in Ukraine.Trump also denied responsibility for any changes, saying on Friday that it “wasn’t me” and that “from what I understand, it’s the same as it’s always been.”Rubio said a day later that a Starlink slowdown in Ukraine had “sort of happened” but added that “my understanding is it’s been restored.”Zelenskyy has described the changes to Starshield as “a planned operation”.On NBC's Meet the Press on Sunday, US treasury secretary Scott Bessent said that “President Trump and Secretary Rubio have categorically said that no one in the Trump administration did that, and I think it is very reckless for President Zelenskyy to make such a charge.”The issue has also drawn criticism from US lawmakers across party lines, with calls for the Trump administration to restore Ukraine's satellite connectivity.After a group of lawmakers spoke with Zelenskyy over a video call on Monday, Republican Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina said the Ukrainian president had “confirmed ongoing Starlink disruptions, reported interruptions to critical US intelligence sharing and raised concerns about delays in air-defense interceptors.”Tillis also criticised Washington's approach towards Moscow, saying: “Degrading Ukraine’s satellite communications, weakening its air defenses and easing sanctions against Russia only embolden Putin and prolong this war.”He was referring to a move by Trump to allow the US to buy Russian diesel fuel.On Tuesday, Zelenskyy said he had a “substantive discussion” with Rubio about Starshield, shortages of missile interceptors and recent disruptions to early warning systems for Russian ballistic missile attacks.Rubio rejected claims that the US had withheld warnings about Russian attacks on Ukraine, calling them “simply not accurate”. He also said Patriot interceptors were in short supply worldwide.“Nothing is being deliberately denied to Ukraine,” Rubio said.

Ukrainian troops struggle to adapt to restrictions

Despite the conflicting statements from Washington, Ukrainian commanders said the effects of the reported restrictions were evident on the battlefield.Brigadier General Andriy Biletsky, who recently took command of thousands of troops in the Center Grouping of Forces in eastern Ukraine, said Ukrainian forces were adapting to the new speed limits.Before the restrictions, Ukrainian drones using Starshield could fly at speeds of up to 250 miles per hour while maintaining a stable connection, Biletsky said.The formal speed limit had already been 100 miles per hour, but it had not been enforced, he added.This could allow the US to maintain that the system's rules had not changed, even as Ukrainian forces experienced a significant impact on the battlefield, the report said.Biletsky said that even if Ukraine managed to modify its attack drones to operate within the speed limits, interceptor drones used against Russian jet-powered weapons would remain at a disadvantage.These interceptors need to fly faster than incoming drones to bring them down. Russian jet-powered drones can travel far faster than 100 miles per hour.“Reducing the speed limits for air defense is a painful decision that literally undermines the protection of our cities, first and foremost,” Biletsky said.

“So when the Pentagon took this step, it was undoubtedly an unfriendly move toward Ukraine’s civilian population.”Ukrainian commanders told The New York Times that they believed the restrictions were the result of a political decision rather than a technical problem. They said troops had long feared that Washington could use satellite connectivity as leverage to push Kyiv into making concessions.Oleh recalled receiving a series of angry calls from soldiers as his drones fell from the sky last week.

Troops scrambled to redirect the drones and save as much equipment as possible.He said soldiers felt abandoned and argued that Ukraine should stop viewing the US as an ally.Lieutenant Yuriy Butusov, a company commander with Ukraine's 23rd Assault Regiment in the Khartia Corps, said the slower connections had severely affected his troops' operations.He said the disruption had effectively given Russian forces “a vacation day”.“This day without Starlink saved many lives and many trucks for Russia, unfortunately,” Butusov said.“It’s a big cost for us,” he added. “And much more blood. Our blood.”