Musk’s Satellite Shield Falters: Zelenskyy Alleges SpaceX Crippling Ukraine’s Drone Defense
November 14, 2026
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Elon Musk’s SpaceX of deliberately limiting the speed of his Starshield satellite network over Russian occupied areas of Ukraine preventing Kyiv from shooting down enemy Russian drones.
Zelenskyy said the speed of Starshield over occupied areas has been limited to 161km/h (100mph). Clearly this was not a accident caused by a technical fault, saying Zelenskyy’s team believe the limitations were caused by SpaceX.
“Based on today’s limitations of Starshield, it looks like SpaceX did cause these limitations. Our team is telling me that so it’s not so clear. We need to understand what is happening.”
There has been serious questions raised over who is actually in control of critical wartime infrastructure. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio had previously assured allies that Starshield was more directly controlled by the U.S. Government with less room for Musk’s personal antics. However, it appears that the billionaire entrepreneur has been able to veto Ukraine’s air defences.
Ukrainian forces say they have been unable to intercept Russian jet powered Shahed drones due to the limitations on speed. Air defence units have to wait until the drones enter unrestricted areas meaning Moscow’s drone army have gained valuable extra minutes.
Musk’s satellite services have previously caused controversy in Ukraine since the full scale invasion. Since the start of the war, Starlink and now Starshield have been both a blessing and a curse with access to the services appearing to be dependant on the whims of one man.
With Russia’s drones flying over Ukraine, who is actually in control of a satellite system owned by one person? Zelenskyy is calling for answers. Those defending Kyiv – and the country’s citizens – deserve more.
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