President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukrainian interceptor drones lose contact with their operators at speeds of 161 km/h due to restrictions on Starshield terminals. According to him, this prevents them from intercepting Russian jet-powered Shahed drones and protecting energy facilities from attacks.
Zelenskyy made the statement in his address.
The president noted that speed restrictions on Starshield terminals remain in place along the front line and in temporarily occupied territories.
As a result, Ukrainian interceptor drones lose contact with their operators when they reach speeds of 161 km/h, or 100 miles per hour.
“Our interceptor drones lose contact with their operators at a speed of 161 kilometers per hour (100 miles per hour) and simply cannot catch up with Russian jet-powered ‘Shaheds’,” Zelenskyy stressed.
In his view, these restrictions are precisely why some Russian strikes on electrical substations reach their targets.
The president said he had instructed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Defense and the Office of the President to work as closely as possible with the American side and SpaceX to have the restrictions lifted.
“We expect these restrictions to be lifted. The protection of lives and Ukraine’s energy infrastructure ahead of winter directly depends on this,” he said.
Russia used more than 2,300 attack drones in one week
According to Zelenskyy, Russian forces have used more than 2,300 attack drones, 1,590 guided aerial bombs and 15 missiles of various types against Ukraine this week alone.
Overnight and on the morning of November 15, Russian forces attacked energy infrastructure in Zaporizhzhia and the Sumy, Odesa, Zhytomyr and Kirovohrad regions.
Railway infrastructure in the Dnipropetrovsk and Kharkiv regions, as well as in Zaporizhzhia, also came under attack.
In addition, Russia carried out strikes on the Donetsk and Kyiv regions.
According to the president, 16 people are known to have been injured in the latest attacks.
Zelenskyy called on international partners to strengthen their support for Ukraine and help protect the population and energy infrastructure.
