KYIV – Limitations affecting Starshield, the military version of Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite system, appear to be back in Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Thursday.

“Unfortunately, our units have been recording significant disruptions to Starshield’s operations over the territory of Ukraine for several days now – along the entire front line and in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine,” Zelenskyy said in a statement.

About a month ago, Ukraine reported a drop in connectivity for objects traveling faster than 161 km/h, which prevented its defensive systems, especially its interceptors, from working properly. The restriction was lifted on Oct. 24. In his statement, Zelenskyy said the disruptions were not due to a malfunction, but once again to a systematic speed restriction.

“For us, this primarily means a significant complication in intercepting Russian jet-powered drones,” Zelenskyy said.

The latest restrictions have already allowed several Russian drones to get through Ukrainian air defense and kill more Ukrainians, he added. 

“Connectivity issues have resurfaced,” said Serhii Bezkrestnov, an advisor to Zelenskyy on defense technology, “specifically regarding communication with helicopters pursuing ‘Shahed’ drones, as well as with jet interceptors tasked with shooting down jet-powered ‘Shaheds’.”

A European official with first-hand knowledge of the situation, who was granted anonymity to discuss the matter freely, said the Starshield limits were first noticed three days ago, when negotiations between the U.S. and Russia began in Abu Dhabi. Ukrainian officials believe this is not a coincidence, but a pressure tactic, they added.

The U.S. Congress bipartisan Ukraine Caucus on Thursday demanded in a statement “a full accounting from the Trump Administration and SpaceX on how and why this occurred and immediate action to restore full access to Starshield.”

U.S. President Donald Trump said last Sunday that he couldn’t tell who slowed down Starlink for Ukraine for much of October, and wasn’t even sure it had been throttled.

“It wasn’t me …. The system is a very good system. And it was perhaps turned down. I don’t even know. It hasn’t been proven to me that it was turned down,” Trump said on 60 Minutes.

“There’s a lot of lies going on with that war. But I know this, that when I heard about it, it went back up,” Trump added.

Kyiv is seeking urgent talks to renew its contract with Starshield, which is ending in mid-2027, a Ukrainian official told reporters last week.

The U.S. Department of Defense and SpaceX, Starshield’s parent company, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

This story has been updated.

When (or if) Ring's security camera drone flies into our homes in January, you won't get the option to pilot it yourself. The Ring Drone Cam relies entirely on an "AI Pilot" system to follow pre-programmed routes and navigate autonomously around obstacles, with no manual control option available - and an embarrassing demonstration with CBS News might reveal why.

The video, broadcast on CBS Mornings and published on Threads, shows Ring founder Jamie Siminoff allowing technology reporter Jo Ling Kent to manually fly an early version of the drone via a mobile app with integrated controls.

Ling Kent: "Can I control it?"

Siminoff: "Yeah, so …

Read the full story at The Verge.

KYIV — The Kremlin continued its onslaught against Ukraine just hours after peace talks in Abu Dhabi ended, attacking Kyiv with ballistic missiles and 123 attack drones Thursday.

Ukraine reportedly shot down 94 attack drones and no missiles, while one person was killed in Kyiv and five were injured, Mayor Vitaliy Klitschko said. Emergency services also reported fires in the Rivne and Zhytomyr regions.

Russia’s defense ministry claimed responsibility for the attack and said it was targeting drone production sites and electricity substations. Moscow also reported shooting down some 70 Ukrainian drones over eight regions overnight.

The mutual attacks came hours after Russia and Ukraine concluded another round of trilateral peace talks, mediated by the United States. While both sides agreed to prepare another major prisoner swap, other issues, including territory and Europe’s participation in future talks, reportedly caused heated debates at the negotiating table.

A member of the Ukrainian delegation, David Arakhamia, described negotiations as some of the toughest yet, saying the Russians made strict demands and left little room for compromise.

“Every inch of our land will be returned,” Vladimir Medinsky, head of the Russian delegation, said after the negotiations, describing Ukraine as “an abscess that burst.” In addition to demanding Ukrainian territories, the Kremlin called for the establishment of a new security architecture in Europe.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said territory remained one of the many topics discussed during the latest round, with the U.S. mediators focusing on different ways to solve the territorial spat, mainly in the Donbas region.

“They believe that to stop this war, we must leave our own territory. It is impossible to speak to us in such a way when it concerns the independence of our country. They are trying to find some variations of this. And I have heard various things,” Zelenskyy said during a press conference in Dublin on Wednesday.

“The idea was something like this: If the war were to stop along the current front line, then parts of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions could subsequently be administratively transferred to the jurisdiction of a different oblast. But that was just one of roughly a million different ideas,” a senior official, who was granted anonymity to discuss classified details, told POLITICO.

“This does not mean that Ukraine will ever recognize the occupied territories as Russian,” the official added.

Amazon-owned Ring is pushing into robotics with the launch of a home security drone and a rolling robot designed to patrol and protect businesses.

Eingeklemmt zwischen Kaliningrad und Belarus liegt die verwundbarste Stelle der NATO. Genau hier entsteht mit der Panzerbrigade 45 das wohl wichtigste Projekt der deutschen Zeitenwende. Bis 2027 sollen fast 5.000 deutsche Soldaten dauerhaft in Litauen stationiert werden.

Doch die Bedrohung durch Russland ist längst nicht mehr nur theoretisch: Drohnen, Desinformation und brennende Infrastruktur zeigen, dass der hybride Krieg Litauen bereits erreicht hat. Im Gespräch erklärt der litauische Verteidigungsminister Robertas Kaunas, wie real die Gefahr einer Invasion ist.

Die Folge beleuchtet, wie sich die baltischen Staaten wappnen und was Europa tun muss, falls die USA als Schutzmacht ausfallen. Eine präzise Einordnung, warum die Abschreckung an der Ostflanke über das Schicksal des Kontinents entscheidet und die Sicherheit in Vilnius letztlich die Sicherheit in Berlin bedeutet.

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BRUSSELS — European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is slated to visit Bulgaria and Romania next week, following a series of drone attacks on Black Sea vessels that have heightened security tensions along NATO’s eastern flank.

According to three European Commission officials familiar with the plans, von der Leyen is expected to travel to both countries before attending the COP climate summit in Turkey. “It’s now the deadliest shipping route in the world,” said one of the officials, who was granted anonymity to speak about security-related plans.

At least seven commercial vessels were reportedly struck by drones in the Black Sea last month, leaving two sailors dead and at least 25 missing. The attacks, which Romania blames on Russia, have brought the violence of the war in Ukraine dangerously close to NATO territory.

Romania has warned that the strikes are part of Moscow’s escalating aggression against Ukraine, while Bulgaria has stopped short of formally blaming Moscow, referring instead to drones coming from “an eastern direction.”

The security concerns reached Bulgaria’s shores Friday, when a local resident discovered a drone washed up near the coastal town of Shabla. The aerial vehicle appeared to have been carried ashore by the sea, said the municipality’s mayor, Mariyan Zhechev. The drone’s origin and whether it was connected to the recent attacks on commercial shipping have not been established.

It is unclear whether von der Leyen will be accompanied by anyone else such as European Council President António Costa or EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas. In Bucharest on Monday she will meet with Romanian President Nicușor Dan and Prime Minister Luca Niculescu. On Tuesday, she will meet Bulgarian Prime Minsiter Rumen Radev in Varna and visit the Nikola Vapsarov Naval Academy.

The plans come as NATO allies step up surveillance over the Black Sea following the attacks on commercial shipping. Italian, British and American reconnaissance aircraft were spotted conducting simultaneous missions over the region Tuesday, according to Bulgarian broadcaster bTV, while France has extended the deployment of a maritime patrol aircraft in Romania.

The deteriorating security situation is also prompting diplomatic efforts to protect commercial shipping. Speaking at Saturday’s G20 foreign ministers’ meeting in Atlanta, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said India and Turkey had put forward proposals to help grain-carrying vessels navigate the Black Sea safely amid the continuing Russia-Ukraine war.

This article has been updated with details of Ursula von der Leyen’s itinerary in Romania and Bulgaria.

Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda doesn’t think a conventional Russian attack on NATO territory is likely for now, but expects Russian leader Vladimir Putin’s provocations to continue.

“I don’t think Russia is currently ready for large-scale operations,” he said in an interview with WELT, which, like POLITICO, is part of the Axel Springer Global Reporters Network. “Russia’s resources are tied up on the Ukrainian battlefield, and Russia is not succeeding there.”

“But Putin is testing us and moving ever closer to Article 5, NATO’s collective defense commitment,” he added.

According to Nausėda, the Russians want to observe how the alliance responds to so-called hybrid attacks, which are suspected to have included drone incursions, cyberattacks and arson, among other things.

The hybrid war will therefore continue, not only on NATO’s eastern flank but also in Germany, Denmark and other countries, Nausėda explained. Russia is testing “how determined we are and whether we will respond collectively when certain red lines are crossed,” the Lithuanian president said.

Nausėda, an economist who has led Lithuania since 2019, also sees no serious willingness in Moscow to enter into negotiations to end its war against Ukraine before next spring.

Moscow will use the winter months to keep up the pressure on Ukraine through air strikes on cities, he said. “The Russians will only pretend to negotiate. I don’t trust them.”

Putin will make demands that are unacceptable to Ukraine from the outset, he added. “If Ukraine gets through this winter, and I am convinced that it will, the chances of serious talks will improve in 2027. I don’t expect them any earlier.”

Joe Stanley-Smith contributed to this report.

The Axel Springer Global Reporters Network harnesses the resources of the company’s newsrooms to publish ambitious scoops, investigations, interviews, opinion pieces and analysis. It allows journalists — including those from POLITICO, The Telegraph, Business Insider, WELT, BILD, Onet and Fakt — to collaborate on major stories for an international audience of hundreds of millions across platforms: online, print, TV and audio.

TALLINN — Europe shouldn’t open a diplomatic channel to Russian President Vladimir Putin, warned the leader of one of the continent’s most exposed nations.

“Europe should not be in a mediator’s position,” Estonia’s Prime Minister Kristen Michal told POLITICO in an interview this week. “You should not take the role of trying to please the dictator.”

European leaders have long feared the U.S. administration under President Donald Trump may pursue a Russia–Ukraine peace deal on terms that sideline Europe and disadvantage Kyiv. The most recent talks between Washington and Moscow have reignited debate in Brussels and national capitals about the need for Europe to have its own direct line to the Kremlin. Finnish President Alexander Stubb and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre held a 90-minute call with Putin in late October.

The Estonian premier — whose country of 1.3 million people borders Russia and has been subject to Moscow’s persistent attempts to stoke internal unrest — warned against the idea of direct talks, saying it would weaken Europe’s position with Putin.

“For once, Europe has a plan which is actually working” by suffocating Russia economically with sanctions, Michal said. Being a mediator means “you are willing to lower the standards, for example, for Russia,” including when it comes to imposing and enforcing punitive sanctions, he said.

“You cannot [have] two roles. One role is backing up Ukraine and pressuring Russia. A second one is trying to have a form of mediation,” the Estonian leader said.

“Putin should understand that Europe is strong, keeping together and we have one voice,” he added.

U.S. officials will sit down with Ukrainian and Russian representatives next week. The talks, which will be the first face-to-face negotiations since February, will be held in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff said Monday.

The Estonian leader said Europeans “appreciate” the Trump administration’s attempts to broker a peace deal, “but the pressure should be very much on Russia,” he said. “The problem [is] sitting in [the] Kremlin. Nowhere else.”

With Trump’s Republican Party in crisis after a major loss in the U.S. midterm elections Tuesday, Europe is closely watching how the shift of power in the U.S. Congress will influence the president’s position on Ukraine.

“Elections have consequence. So this is a good thing in democracy, that you have checks and balances,” Michal said about the election outcome.

He added the electoral shift could move Washington further “to the better side, more value-based side. And when [the] U.S. is more value-based … that probably is a good message to Ukraine and to Europe.”

To heap pressure on Russia, Estonia has spearheaded a push — together with Poland and Sweden — to toughen up visa rules for Russians, including former fighters who fought on the battlefields in Ukraine. Tallinn has proposed an outright ban on allowing ex-soldiers from Russia’s armed forces access to the EU at large.

Officials believe the tourist visas allow Russian operatives easy access into the bloc to conduct so-called hybrid warfare campaigns — from flying drones over sensitive security sites to sabotage of infrastructure.

EU officials told POLITICO last month the European Commission is planning to put forward proposals in the new year.

Michal said Europe had no time to waste as hybrid attacks keep disrupting services. “You should not have these kind of people running around Europe. So limit the visas,” he said.