AI-rewritten: This is a summary of an article from Ars Technica, rewritten by AI (Qwen, running locally) to make it easier to read. The facts come from the original article – read it for the full story.

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Ukrainian troops faced unexpected disruptions when Starlink satellite Internet systems began throttling speeds above 160 km/h, causing signal failures that hindered drone missions early Wednesday morning. Senior Ukrainian officials stated these logistics limitations arrived with no warning during the night. Serhii Beskrestnov, a defense ministry adviser, noted that long-range drone operations and defenses against Russian jet-powered drones were also impacted because Starlink is used in interceptors. The 7th Rapid Response Corps reported that Starshield, SpaceX’s military-grade network, previously had no data transmission limits but now faces interruptions lasting 10–20 seconds even at speeds of 110–120 kmph. This reduced speed made drone take-offs difficult and increased vulnerability to enemy strikes, forcing some missions to be cancelled.

The situation coincides with escalating Russian attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure and pressure from US President Donald Trump to end the war by stopping strikes on Russian oil refineries. Analysts attribute rising global diesel prices largely to the US conflict with Iran, though Trump blames Ukraine. On Wednesday, Trump denied that Washington cut off intelligence sharing, stating they are helping Ukraine share intel while wanting the war to end. Meanwhile, Ukrainian officials received no advance warning of a second day of missile attacks on Kyiv’s energy facilities. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reported that 39 ballistic missiles and over 120 drones struck 26 power facilities and four oil and gas sites, leaving at least 600,000 people without electricity and killing two people.

Some Ukrainian officials speculate SpaceX introduced the Starlink restrictions after Elon Musk posted messages criticizing President Zelenskyy, including a comment that Zelensky had gone too far. Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski questioned if Musk was playing politics with his products again. Zelenskyy arrived in London to meet Prime Minister Andy Burnham and called on Washington to respond to the attacks, emphasizing that Russia showed ostentatious disrespect toward the United States. The strike targeted infrastructure covered by a ceasefire announced by Trump. While Ukraine supported an energy ceasefire, Russia continued targeting power plants and civilian lives.