Trump did not back expanding Starlink to allow Ukrainian strike drones to operate in Russia — Financial Times
Zelensky asked the President of the United States to persuade Musk to allow satellite communications up to 200 km inside Russian territory
The President of the United States Donald Trump did not agree to help the Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky arrange with Elon Musk to expand Ukraine’s access to the Starlink satellite system. The matter concerns using that connectivity on strike drones of the Defense Forces during operations on Russian territory. This was reported by the Financial Times, citing informed sources.
According to the publication, Zelensky personally asked Trump to persuade Musk to allow Starlink to be used on Ukrainian long-range strike drones at distances of up to 200 km inside Russia.
The Ukrainian side explained that such a capability would help the Defense Forces more effectively detect and strike Russian rocket launchers, thwart ballistic missile launches, and hit other critically important targets.
“The proposal was that Musk would allow Ukraine to use Starlink on long-range strike drones at distances of up to 200 km inside Russia, including against ballistic missile launch infrastructure, command-and-control systems and other assets,” — the Financial Times writes.
Before turning to Trump, Ukrainian authorities had already tried to persuade Musk to grant such permission on their own, but those attempts yielded no result. That is why Kyiv was counting on the assistance of the US president.
However, according to Financial Times sources, Trump rejected Zelensky’s request and did not support the proposed plan. According to the publication’s interlocutors, the US president did not take on the relevant commitments, and participants in the Oval Office meeting believe that Musk will not agree to grant Kyiv such permission.
“Trump shied away from commitments and, according to people present at the Oval Office meeting, did not support the plan. They believe that Musk will not give Kyiv such permission,” — the article says.
Starlink provides drones with stable satellite connectivity over long distances. As a result, they are less vulnerable to jamming, and their potential applications are broader than those of drones that use conventional radio links.
Earlier, media outlets also reported that Ukraine could be left without access to Starlink.
