Zelenskyy alert for restrictions on satellite communications system

O Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky today warned that restrictions on the Starshield satellite communications system of Ukraine are damaging its ability to intercept Russian drones.

The Ukrainian leader warned that the system limitations, operated by SpaceX of Elon Musk, may weaken the defenses of Ukrainian energy infrastructure before the winter months, when Moscow has repeatedly attacked the power grid.

Ukrainian interceptor drones continue to lose contact with their operators when they fly more than 161 kilometres per hour along the front line and over the territory occupied by Russia, which prevents them from intercepting Russian Shahed drones, Zelensky said.

“ We expect these restrictions to be lifted. Life protection and Ukrainian energy infrastructure before winter depends on it. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Defence and the Office of the Presidency have been instructed to work closely with the American side and SpaceX. It's important to be on the right side of history. We need to help Ukraine,” Zelensky wrote on social media.

Zelenskyy questioned on Saturday whether the problem was technical, stating that the restrictions seemed to have been imposed by SpaceX.

Meanwhile, a Russian attack on Chornomorsk, a port city in the Odessa region of Ukraine, injured six people and damaged energy infrastructure, said regional manager Oleh Kiper on Sunday through Telegram today.

The explosion and debris also damaged a pipeline and nearby residential buildings, while two parked cars burned down.

The attack hit a facility operated by DTEK Odesa Electric Networks, leaving temporarily around 41,000 power-free customers, Kiper said.

During the night, Russian air raids on the city of Zaporizhia in the southeast of the country injured six other people, including a two-year-old boy, today reported the State Emergency Service of Ukraine.

Russia launched more than 2,300 drones, 1,590 guided air bombs and 15 missiles of various types against Ukraine in the past week, Zelensky added.

The attacks with Ukrainian drones damaged two electrical substations in Rostov, Russia, killing a chief engineer, Governor Yuri Slyusar said.

Four people were injured when drone debris fell on their cars, Slyusar wrote on social media.

A fifth person was injured when the debris hit a “production facility” in the village of Troitskoye, he said.

Ukrainian forces also attacked the Tartaristan region in Russia, authorities said.

According to Radmir Belyaev, mayor of Nizhnekamsk, the third largest city in the region, a “large-scale and prolonged attack” damaged the industrial zone.

Six people were injured and the heating and hot water supply was interrupted in parts of the city, he added.

The Russian Defense Ministry stated that its forces shot down 533 Ukrainian drones overnight in 13 Russian regions, the Ukrainian peninsula annexed to Crimea and the Black Seas and Azov.