Carney: Starshield Cuts Cost Ukrainian Lives at 160 km/h Threshold

Prime Minister Mark Carney stated on Friday that restrictions on Ukraine's access to Starshield are directly costing lives, specifically when incoming threats exceed a speed of 160 kilometres per hour.

The speed threshold marks the upper limit of what Ukrainian forces can currently track. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the loss of the satellite system means drones and missiles moving faster than that point are effectively invisible to air defense systems. This gap has led to civilian casualties, including children, as Russia launches attacks that interceptors cannot guide.

Carney spoke from Istanbul, questioning the judgment of the individuals responsible for the decision. He described the situation as a country fighting for its citizens' lives against naked aggression. He said it does seem clear that the restrictions have real human consequences. He pointed to an attack in central Kyiv within the previous 36 hours, calling it a direct strike on citizens with no military target and immense human suffering.

The dispute over who ordered the curbs remains unresolved. Reuters reported last week that two U.S. officials said the order came from the White House. The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday that Elon Musk ordered it personally. Musk has stated that Starshield is owned and controlled by the U.S. government and that commercial Starlink was not authorized for military use. President Donald Trump has denied ordering the changes, saying on Friday that he does not know who did and would not say even if he did.

Conflicting reports persist regarding the current status of the service. Trump said on Thursday that Musk had restored access. Zelenskyy contradicted this in a CNN interview, stating that the system still does not work. Ukrainian military officials confirmed on Friday that the restrictions remain in place. In an NBC interview on Sunday, Zelenskyy said he believes the American government sent the message to limit speed and that SpaceX carried it out technically.

The timing aligns with a period of strained relations between Kyiv and Washington. Trump is pushing Ukraine to accept stronger concessions in a peace deal and has asked the country to stop striking Russian oil refineries. Carney noted that relying on an ally that may change its view puts Canadians at risk. He said this realization drives decisions to diversify and build sovereign capabilities, a process that will take time given Canada's high reliance on specific foreign systems.

Ukraine is moving to reduce its dependence on the U.S. network. Zelenskyy signed a letter of intent on Thursday with Finnish companies Nokia and ICEYE. The agreement aims to develop a Ukrainian satellite communications network to secure future independent access to space-based data and communications.