The White House reportedly ordered temporary limits on SpaceX’s Starshield service for Ukraine, disrupting drone operations and deepening tensions between Washington and Kyiv.
01Summary
- 01Two US officials and one Western official said the order to slow Starshield came from inside the White House.
- 02Ukrainian officials said military-grade Starlink receptors stopped working when mounted on fast-moving objects, affecting drone guidance systems.
- 03A Defence Ministry official in Ukraine said on Thursday the receptors were working in motion again, but only up to 100 miles per hour (160 kph).
- 04The Pentagon is the biggest customer of Starshield, which SpaceX developed for government and national-security users.
- 05Reuters said the limits came as President Donald Trump pressed Kyiv to stop attacks on Russian refineries and relations between the two governments deteriorated.
02Why it matters
The restrictions affected battlefield communications and drone missions, which can matter for how Ukraine conducts strikes and air defence. They also add to signs of strain between the US and Ukraine, which could influence wider policy and security support.
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