Ukraine accuses U.S. of helping Russia as missiles hit Kyiv

Ukraine on Wednesday accused the United States of helping Russia by failing to warn it of incoming missile strikes and hobbling its military response through changes to the Starlink system it uses on the battlefield.

Sign In or Create an Account

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy framed the lack of notice about a wave of powerful strikes on Tuesday night and early Wednesday as “completely unjust,” and accused Russia of wilfully flouting a supposed “energy ceasefire” announced by U.S. President Donald Trump.

A senior official in Kyiv confirmed that the United States had in recent days threatened to stop providing intelligence about Russian missile launches that Ukraine uses to thwart attacks. Trump on Tuesday denied doing so.

Get a dash of perspective along with the trending news of the day in a very readable format.

By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc.

A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder.

The next issue of NP Posted will soon be in your inbox.

We encountered an issue signing you up. Please try again

But they and defence officials also suggested Washington was behind slower speeds reported on some Starlink internet terminals that help Ukraine’s military hit Russian-occupied territory and operate interceptor drones.

“It’s obvious they (the United States) are helping Russia for some reason,” the senior official told AFP.

Zelenskyy adviser Sergiy Beskrestnov said the attacks and Starlink restrictions were more than a coincidence as the network was “the most effective solution” for protecting Ukraine against jet-powered Russian attack drones, which can fly at up to 600 kilometres per hour.

“Through their actions, our partners are depriving us of one of the few chances we have to defend the country against jet-powered Shahed drones,” he wrote on Telegram.

Ukrainian defence sources said SpaceX, owned by tech titan Elon Musk, “unilaterally restricted the operation of Starshield terminals… without prior warning,” hitting connectivity for its drones.

There was no immediate comment from either Musk or SpaceX.

But last weekend he backed Trump, who has enraged Western allies by announcing a diesel-supply deal with heavily sanctioned Moscow and blindsided both sides in the nearly five-year conflict by announcing an “energy ceasefire.”

Trump also angrily hit out at Zelenskyy — and even suggested he should be replaced as president — unless he stopped Ukrainian long-range attacks on Russian energy infrastructure.

In Moscow, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russia was watching for any sign that Washington’s backing for Ukraine may have shifted.

“We are carefully noting all this. It is too early to draw any systemic conclusions,” he told reporters.

President Vladimir Putin’s special envoy on economic cooperation, Kirill Dmitriev, meanwhile, said the first contracts on providing diesel to the United States would be signed in the coming days.

“We are in close, hourly contact with the American side, and everything is moving very quickly,” he added.

Trump, facing crunch mid-term elections next month, has blamed Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries for the squeeze on fuel supplies and increase in prices at the pump.

But most experts say the real reason is the joint U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran since late February, which have seen Tehran block off the Strait of Hormuz, a vital route for oil and gas shipments.

Ballistic missiles have now struck the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, for two nights running, before air raid sirens could sound in time to warn people to take cover in basements, bomb shelters or metro stations.

“Russia has never before shown such ostentatious disrespect toward the United States,” said Zelenskyy, accusing Moscow of squandering a chance to ease hostilities. “Russia does not consider the American President’s statements strong.”

The lack of warning has been reported only rarely during the conflict and Ukrainian officials have previously suggested the Russian military’s use of hard-to-detect missiles or potential technical issues could be to blame.

Six people were killed and dozens more wounded in Kyiv on Wednesday, the authorities said, while significant damage to energy facilities and equipment knocked out power to swathes of the city.

Power plants came under ballistic-missile attack in the eastern Kharkiv region, while Zhytomyr in the northwest, Sumy in the northeast and Chernigiv in the north were also hit.

Russia has previously targeted Ukraine’s power stations and heating infrastructure, crippling supplies before winter, when temperatures can plummet to as low as -20C.

Two people were killed in the central Dnipropetrovsk region and a further person in Zaporizhzhia in the southeast, the authorities said. Six others were killed in a drone strike at a wholesaler in the western city of Lutsk, the interior ministry said.

Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark nationalpost.com and sign up for our daily newsletter, Posted, here.

This website uses cookies to personalize your content (including ads), and allows us to analyze our traffic. Read more about cookies here. By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.