Zelensky imposes demand for refinery deal - WSJ

The Wall Street Journal reported that Ukraine is ready to stop attacks on Russian oil refineries in exchange for extensive Starlink coverage.

The Wall Street Journal reported that Volodymyr Zelensky was ready to halt attacks on Russian oil refineries for 100 days in exchange for 300 km of increased Starlink satellite internet coverage for the Ukrainian military.

The report comes as US President Donald Trump has pressed Zelensky to end the strikes, which he says are driving up global energy prices. In his interview with Newsmax on Thursday, Trump called Ukraine's actions "disgraceful".

In an article published the same day, the WSJ said Republican senators Roger Wicker and Kevin Cramer brought the deal to the Ukrainian leader during a trip to Kiev last Friday. The outlet claimed that it was told by anonymous sources that Zelensky agreed to the offer.

According to the report, Starlink's extended coverage should help Ukraine target missile launchers inside Russia.

Ukrainian drone attack caused a fire in a Russian oil refinery (video)

Faced with a critical shortage of US-supplied Patriot air defense missiles, Kiev is struggling to contain Russia's widespread missile and drone strikes against military infrastructure across Ukraine. Moscow says the attacks are in response to Ukrainian terrorist attacks on civilian targets in Russia, including energy facilities.

The Ukrainians, who have relied heavily on Starlink for battlefield communications and drone control during the conflict with Russia, said the WSJ was alarmed by a slowdown in satellite internet provided by Elon Musk's SpaceX this week.

Earlier this week, Zelensky confirmed reports that the U.S. had threatened to withhold information sharing with Kiev if it ignored Trump's demands to end energy strikes inside Russia. Kiev officials also complained about the lack of advance warning from the Americans before the Russian missile attacks.

Musk accuses Trump of suppressing "military Starlink" in Ukraine

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Tuesday that Russia was unaware of the Starlink slowdown for the Ukrainians, noting that "in general, of course, it would be better if such amazing technology was not used for military purposes at all."

Last month, Peskov warned that using Starlink to facilitate attacks deep into Russian soil would be "a very harmful, potentially dangerous and ill-conceived step."

U.S. officials apparently do not need Musk's approval to extend Starlink's military coverage, known as Starshield, to Ukraine. SpaceX's CEO said earlier this week that its systems are owned and controlled by the U.S. government, and that the Pentagon and the U.S. president decide on speed limits or their use.

On Sunday, Musk backed Trump's suggestion that "it's time for Ukraine to elect a new president." Commenting on the video of the White House with the American president, the entrepreneur criticized the Ukrainian leader and said that "Zelensky went too far."

Zelensky is said to have wanted to discuss expanding Starlink coverage with Musk in person during a US visit to Washington in July, but the SpaceX CEO declined the meeting.