Ukraine is bracing for a tough winter as restrictions on Starlink’s military applications have encouraged Russia to step up attacks on civilian and energy targets, a senior Ukrainian official told CNBC on Friday.
Serhiy Derkach, Ukraine’s first deputy minister for recovery, infrastructure and transport, said Russian forces had intensified strikes on kyiv’s bridges, threatening to isolate nearly 2 million residents on the eastern bank of the Dnipro River, while also targeting railway networks and border crossings in a bid to disrupt transport and sow panic among civilians.
“As the United States limits the use of Starlinks on the battlefield, Russia believes the time has come to try to inflict even more pain and suffering on Ukraine’s civilian infrastructure,” Derkach said.
“We are definitely heading into very difficult weeks and months and need the support of our partners more than ever,” he said, adding that Ukrainians are already experiencing power outages lasting 4 to 12 hours a day.
The warning comes as President Volodymyr Zelensky called on Friday in Brussels for support from European leaders to help Ukraine prepare a winter support package, including energy aid, air defense and financing.
Zelensky on Friday praised Europe’s “real leaders” for their support of kyiv, as his strained relations with U.S. President Donald Trump overshadow a summit focused on securing additional support for Ukraine.
“I am very grateful that we have such massive support from the EU Council Commission and leaders – real leaders,” Zelensky said, highlighting Europe’s support since the start of the war.
His remarks come as tensions between the United States and Ukraine flared after SpaceX Starlink service was restricted in Ukraine earlier this week, slowing the connectivity that Ukraine relies on to defend against Russian attacks.
Zelensky also reportedly faces growing pressure to tone down public criticism of Trump.
Three officials familiar with preparations for the EU summit told the Financial Times they planned to privately urge Zelensky to tone down his rhetoric when they meet in Brussels on Friday.
According to Politico, some European leaders are also concerned about how Zelensky has handled his strained relationship with Trump, with one European diplomat saying Zelensky’s public criticism of the president was “not helpful.”
“We want to end this war as quickly as possible. We are not currently seeing any signals from Russia that they are ready to end this war,” Zelensky told reporters in Brussels on Friday after lamenting on Wednesday that Russia had not respected the “energy ceasefire” announced by Trump.
Trump surprised Russian and Ukrainian officials last week by announcing that the two countries had agreed to stop attacking each other’s electricity infrastructure, in an apparent bid to drive down oil and diesel prices ahead of the US midterm elections in November.
Zelensky later welcomed the proposal and said Ukraine had suspended strikes on Russian energy targets for three days to comply with Washington’s wishes, but he called the deal with Russia to supply diesel to global markets “weak.”
Russia has not confirmed its agreement to an energy ceasefire, saying only that talks are “ongoing.” Russian authorities did not respond to multiple requests for comment from CNBC.
— CNBC’s George Bextor contributed to this report
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