Russian Missiles Strike Kyiv for Second Night as Ukraine Accuses US of Withholding Warnings
Russian ballistic missiles and drones struck Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities for a second consecutive night, killing at least 15 people, damaging energy infrastructure and leaving hundreds of thousands without power, as Ukrainian officials accused the United States of aiding Moscow by withholding missile warnings and restricting Starlink speeds for military drones. [1][2]
Russian Strikes Hit Kyiv for Second Night
Ballistic missiles struck the Ukrainian capital Kyiv for two nights running, before air raid sirens could sound in time to warn people to take cover. [1] Fifteen people were killed around the country in the latest round of strikes. [1] Significant damage to energy facilities and equipment knocked out power to swathes of Kyiv, with some 600,000 people left without power. [1][2] 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. [1] Russia’s defence ministry confirmed it had struck four power plants in and around Kyiv and two in Kharkiv, among other targets. [2] Zelenskiy said 30 energy facilities were damaged. [2] Ukrainian officials said late on Tuesday they had received no warnings from Western partners for a second day before Russian missiles hit the capital. [2] Ukraine reported downing just 4 out of 39 Russian missiles. [2] Rescue workers in Kyiv were stretchering the injured from the wreckage of a blasted-out residential building overnight, while firefighters battled a huge blaze in the darkness. [2] Officials said 2 people were killed and 21 wounded at the site. [2] After a night of bombardment of the capital Kyiv, Russian strikes continued throughout the day on Wednesday with six people killed in the western city of Lutsk, where the regional governor said a warehouse and a residential building were hit. [2]
Zelenskyy Accuses US of Aiding Russia
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on US tech billionaire Elon Musk to restore Starlink, which Kyiv says has been slowed down. [1] Zelenskyy framed the lack of warnings from allies about a wave of powerful strikes on Tuesday night and early Wednesday as “completely unjust.” [1] 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. [1] Trump denied doing so on Tuesday. [1] Defence officials also suggested Washington was behind slower speeds reported on some internet terminals which help Ukraine's military hit Russian-occupied territory and operate interceptor drones. [1] “It’s obvious they (the United States) are helping Russia for some reason,” the senior official told AFP. [1] Zelenskyy adviser Sergiy Beskrestnov said the attacks and Starlink restrictions were more than a coincidence. [1] “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. [1] Zelenskiy said that he was OK with Trump being in the middle of Ukraine and Russia, but added: “If you are in the middle, you have to stay in the middle.” [2] Asked about the restriction on the military version of SpaceX’s Starlink services in Ukraine, Zelenskiy said: “It’s a big mistake … this decision will bring a lot of human losses.” [2]
Starlink Speed Limits Disrupt Ukrainian Drones
Ukrainian military officials said Musk’s SpaceX had without warning started to interrupt functioning of its military-grade terminals when they are moving at high speed. [2] Kyiv installs SpaceX receptors in many of its drones as part of their onboard guidance systems. [2] The terminals operate across Ukraine, including in territory held by Russian forces. [2] “Our defence forces did not receive a warning about this limitation, and this led to the disruption of several missions,” presidential adviser Serhiy Beskrestnov wrote on Telegram, saying the restriction affected StarShield, SpaceX’s military and intelligence service. [2] The speed cutoff hampers Ukraine’s ability to conduct strikes on Russian targets inside Ukraine, or to defend itself from Russian drones using its own interceptor drones, according to a defence ministry source and another military source. [2] Beskrestnov said SpaceX had imposed a speed limit of 160 km per hour. [2] The defence ministry source told Reuters military units had reported guidance systems losing their connections at speeds of less than half that. [2] The defence ministry source said Ukraine was in contact with the company as well as the US government and NATO to seek clarification over the sudden limitations. [2] Former Ukrainian defence minister Mykhailo Fedorov later said that “Starlink's operation at speeds up to 160kmh is being restored. Strike drones and interceptor drones should be able to fly again”. [1] Musk said any disruption was the responsibility of the US government, not his SpaceX company. [1] “Starshield systems are owned and controlled by the US government. Any limits on speed or usage are decided by the US military and ultimately POTUS,” Musk said, referring to US President Donald Trump. [1]
Energy Ceasefire Announcement Ignored
Zelenskyy described the Russian attacks as an “ostentatious disrespect” toward US President Donald Trump’s unilateral announcement of an energy ceasefire, which Ukraine says it has observed but Russia has ignored. [1] Trump announced at the weekend that Ukraine and Russia both agreed to halt attacks on energy targets, although neither side confirmed this and the past two days have seen intensive Russian bombing, including of Ukrainian power stations. [2] Zelenskiy cast the latest Russian attacks as a deliberate snub to Trump’s declaration of a ceasefire on energy targets. [2] “Russia does not consider the American President’s statements strong,” Zelenskiy wrote on X. “The strike was entirely deliberate and demonstrative in its scale – Russia has never before shown such ostentatious disrespect toward the United States.” [2] Zelenskiy has said Ukraine is willing to observe an energy ceasefire and has not targeted Russian refineries since Trump announced it, but will not continue to hold back if Russia ignores the purported truce. [2] Ukraine, for its part, continued long-range strikes on Russia, hitting Russia’s biggest data centre, although it says it is holding back from hitting energy targets for now to show respect for Trump. [2] The Kremlin said on Tuesday that contacts were continuing about an energy truce. [2]
Kremlin Monitors US-Ukraine Relations
In Moscow, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russia was watching for any sign that Washington's backing for Ukraine may have shifted. [1] “We are carefully noting all this. It is too early to draw any systemic conclusions,” he told reporters. [1] 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. [1] “We are in close, hourly contact with the American side, and everything is moving very quickly,” he added. [1]
Context of Broader Tensions
Zelenskyy replied in the affirmative when asked if he felt “betrayed” after Trump announced a diesel-supply deal with heavily sanctioned Moscow. [1] “It’s painful when President Trump chooses one side, not our side,” he said. [1] “I think his advisors are wrong. I don’t know who is pushing him not to the right side. This is not (the) right side of history,” Zelenskyy had framed the lack of warnings from allies 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 unilaterally by Trump. [1] The suggestion that Musk’s company had limited Ukrainian military capabilities drew a sharp response from Poland, which pays for Ukrainian Starlink subscriptions on Kyiv’s behalf. [2] “Hey, @elonmusk, big man, are you playing politics with your products again?” Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski asked Musk on X. [2] “As your European customers, we are watching you.” [2] Shares in European satellite operator Eutelsat jumped on Wednesday as some investors bet that European providers could benefit from growing strains between Washington and Kyiv. [2] Musk is a close political ally of Trump, and the suggestion that SpaceX might limit Ukrainian capabilities reinforced wider Ukrainian concerns that Washington could withhold battlefield support to compel its one-time ally to make concessions. [2] Sources have told Reuters and other media that the US has threatened to cut off intelligence for early warning of missile strikes on Ukraine, to press Kyiv to suspend attacks on Russian oil refineries. [2]
What to watch next: The Kremlin will continue monitoring any sign that Washington's backing for Ukraine may have shifted, while contacts on diesel supplies to the United States move forward with the first contracts expected in the coming days.
