Very strange: Ukraine hits back at Elon Musk over Starlink drone strike claim

Ukrainian officials have rejected SpaceX CEO Elon Musk’s claim that the country’s military breached Starlink's terms of service by using the civilian satellite internet network to carry out offensive drone strikes on Russian targets.Serhii Beskrestnov, a defence technology adviser to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, said long-established restrictions on Starlink's civilian service in Ukraine made such use for offensive operations impossible."It's very strange that Elon Musk doesn't know about the restrictions on Starlink's operation in Ukraine," he wrote in an online post cited by the Associated Press.SpaceX's Starlink and its military-focused Starshield service play a crucial role in maintaining Ukraine’s connectivity amid the ongoing war. HERE'S WHAT HAPPENEDEarlier this month, Ukrainian drones using Starshield lost connectivity while flying at high speeds, disrupting air defences amid daily Russian aerial attacks.Officials said the so-called speed caps were removed on Saturday, thus restoring the service. Earlier, on Saturday, Ukraine had said that the Starlink satellite system and its military version, Starshield, were fully operational again after more than a week of restrictions that disrupted military operations and heightened tensions with the US.Hours later, Musk accused Ukraine's military of violating Starlink's terms, while acknowledging that SpaceX had throttled the satellite internet network in Ukraine."Using Starlink, a civilian commercial service, for offensive drone strikes to kill people has never been allowed, nor should it be," the billionaire wrote in a social media post.He added, "Ukraine military violated Starlink terms of service and used it for offensive drone strikes to kill people. That loophole was closed last week."However, neither the SpaceX boss nor the United States government, which operates Starshield using Starlink technology, had taken responsibility for imposing the curbs.In a post on Telegram, Beskrestnov said drones using the civilian Starlink system were subject to a speed limit of 70–90 kmph (43–56 mph) within Ukraine, while the system did not even function in Russia."Therefore, we physically cannot use commercial Starlink for deep strikes or medium-range strikes," the Ukrainian presidential aide stated.The curbs imposed on Starshield last week raised concerns among Ukrainian military and government officials, with commanders reporting drone losses and disruptions to missions.- Ends(With inputs from agencies)