SpaceX throttles Starlink for Ukrainian forces as Russian missiles batter energy grid

SpaceX imposed a 100mph (160km/h) speed limit on Starlink terminals in motion overnight. Ukrainian forces were not notified. The disruption hit combat operations across the front lines, even as Russian missile strikes on energy infrastructure left at least 600,000 people without electricity across the country.

The restrictions, which came into effect on Tuesday evening, led to the failure of a number of Ukrainian combat missions, according to Serhiy Beskrestnov, an adviser to Zelensky on defence technology. The outage coincided with a massive Russian assault on energy facilities in Kyiv and Kharkiv. Trump had announced an “energy ceasefire” on Sunday via social media. Zelensky has said the US threatened to restrict intelligence sharing if he did not sign up to the ceasefire.

Starlink throttled without warning

The restriction applies to the StarShield military service package, while static terminals remain unaffected. Starlink has become a vital tool for Ukrainian troops, enabling internet access and the control of drones heading toward Russian targets behind the front lines. In a follow-up post, Beskrestnov stressed that Starlink was the most effective tool for enabling interceptors to shoot down Russia’s newly developed jet-propelled drones. Serhii Sternenko, a political activist with close ties to the military, first reported the outage and said the speed threshold for losing connectivity had fallen even lower. Musk had previously cut off Starlink service to Ukrainian soldiers during an offensive that took a small amount of Russian territory. SpaceX has not commented publicly.

“It is clear that this action cannot be a coincidence and is related to the current political situation,” Beskrestnov said. He added that SpaceX is likely to have taken such measures at the request of the Trump administration. A Ukrainian defence ministry source said restrictions were detected on moving terminals and the root cause was being investigated. “This situation is significantly complicating operations, particularly logistics, unmanned systems, middle-strike missions, and other activities,” the source said.

Missiles hit energy grid as ceasefire frays

Russia launched 39 ballistic and cruise missiles overnight. Ukraine’s air force said 128 drones were also launched, with four missiles and 115 drones shot down. Critical energy infrastructure was hit in Kyiv and Kharkiv. Zelensky said there was significant damage to 26 power system facilities and four oil and gas sector facilities. Three people were killed in Kyiv. Russia said its “massive” strikes had hit communications and energy facilities used by Ukraine’s military.

For the second consecutive night, Ukraine received no advance US warning before Russian ballistic missile launches. Col Yurii Ihnat, an air force spokesperson, said Ukraine received no warning before the first barrage on Tuesday evening but did receive warnings from “foreign partners” about three subsequent barrages. Trump has denied that his administration cut intelligence sharing with Ukraine. Zelensky confirmed in an NPR interview aired Wednesday that military advisers had received threats from the US that intelligence sharing could be limited. “The strike was entirely deliberate and demonstrative in its scale – Russia has never before shown such ostentatious disrespect toward the United States,” Zelensky said. “Russia does not consider the American president’s statements strong,” he added.

A ceasefire neither side confirmed

Trump wrote on social media on Sunday: “Effective immediately, there is an ENERGY CEASEFIRE in the War between Russia and Ukraine. Both parties have agreed. Do not break it!” Both Russian and Ukrainian authorities initially denied any knowledge of an energy ceasefire agreement. Ukraine has since welcomed such a deal, while Russian authorities said talks are ongoing. Zelensky on Monday accused Russia of violating the proposed ceasefire. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov downplayed ceasefire prospects, saying Ukraine does not deserve the respite a ceasefire would bring. Zelensky has repeatedly said Ukraine is ready to halt its strikes on Russian oil refineries and other energy facilities if Moscow did the same.

Moscow currently controls about 20% of Ukrainian territory. The Russian defence ministry said 902 Ukrainian drones were shot down overnight over Russian regions including Moscow and Crimea.