World · 17 d ago
Rubio says Ukraine has no Starshield access, but its request is under discussion
"They've asked for access to it in order to conduct deep strikes inside of Russia. They do not have access to it at this moment," US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters on Saturday.
— Marco Rubio, US secretary of state
The term
Starshield
Starshield is the military-grade version of SpaceX's Starlink, launched in 2022 for the US government, with deeper encryption for sensitive information.
Marco Rubio
Not deliberate
Volodymyr Zelenskyy
Drones over 161 km/h cut off
Rubio says Wednesday's Starlink disruption in Ukraine was not deliberate and nobody at the White House ordered speeds cut. Volodymyr Zelenskyy says the satellites stop tracking antennas moving faster than 161 km/h, which hampers Ukraine's drones.
Background
Donald Trump faces criticism from Democrats and Republicans for waiving sanctions on Russia and on countries that buy its oil and gas. Zelenskyy says easing the pressure only encourages Vladimir Putin to keep attacking.
