Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is facing an increasingly untenable situation: the leader of his country’s most-needed ally believes he’s responsible for continuing a war he didn’t start, doesn’t like the way his country is trying to defend itself, and has called for him to be replaced.
Zelensky’s relationship with President Donald Trump has been tumultuous for years, but several recent decisions by Trump, which come as Russia continues its attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, have demonstrated a fissure between them that could be unrecoverable.
Trump’s decision to waive new sanctions against Russia and tariffs on top buyers of Russian energy, coupled with his public criticism of Ukraine’s attacks on Russia’s energy infrastructure, comes as Ukraine experiences instances where it did not get U.S. intelligence to stop incoming attacks, and the U.S.-linked satellite network that the Ukrainian front-line troops use has been operating at reduced speeds.
“I think what concerns me is the cumulative effect of these decisions,” Joshua VerGow, a former Pentagon official, told the Washington Examiner. “Whatever the administration’s diplomatic or strategic objectives are right now, restricting capabilities Ukraine depends on while easing economic pressure on Russia changes the balance of leverage. We need to be asking whether these decisions are actually bringing a negotiated settlement closer or simply making Ukraine less capable of defending itself.”
U.S. officials have disputed that they intentionally reduced the speed of Starshield, the government-owned version of Starlink, which provides a secure satellite internet network. Elon Musk, the head of SpaceX, which runs Starshield and Starlink, also deflected responsibility for the situation.
In totality, the reduced effectiveness of Starshield and intelligence sharing makes Ukraine more vulnerable to Russian attacks, while the waiver helps Russia’s war machine evade sanctions that the legislation, named after the late South Carolina Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham, was designed to target.
“Access to Starlink and Starshield capabilities has played an important role in Ukraine’s defense, and maintaining the effective use of these technologies remains essential to protecting lives and safeguarding critical operations,” Denys Sienik, Ukraine’s acting Charge d’Affaires to the United States, told the Washington Examiner. “We hope that the previous speed limits be restored. As of today, we still face speed restrictions.”
Sienik continued, “These limitations affect front-line logistics and the use of drones designed to counter Russian Shahed attack drones. Speed matters because it directly affects our ability to intercept these threats and save lives. The urgency of this issue is underscored by the scale of Russia’s continued attacks. Over the past week alone, Russia launched nearly 2,700 attack drones, 1,700 guided and other aerial bombs, and 66 missiles against Ukraine, most of them ballistic, according to the figures cited here. Energy infrastructure remains a primary target as Russia continues its efforts to deprive Ukrainian civilians of electricity and other essential services.”
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<p>People carry their belongings as they leave their office following Russian air attack in Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, Oct. 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)</p>
<p> ” data-large-file=”https://conservativemodern.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/changes-the-balance-of-leverage-zelensky-tries-to-hold-on-as-trump-pressures-him-to-concede.webp?w=700″ src=”https://conservativemodern.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/changes-the-balance-of-leverage-zelensky-tries-to-hold-on-as-trump-pressures-him-to-concede.webp” alt=”People carry their belongings as they leave their office following Russian air attack in Kyiv, Ukraine.” class=”wp-image-4771414″ srcset=”https://conservativemodern.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/changes-the-balance-of-leverage-zelensky-tries-to-hold-on-as-trump-pressures-him-to-concede.webp 700w, https://conservativemodern.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/changes-the-balance-of-leverage-zelensky-tries-to-hold-on-as-trump-pressures-him-to-concede.webp?resize=300,200 300w” sizes=”(max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px”><figcaption class=)
People carry their belongings as they leave their office following a Russian air attack in Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, Oct. 19, 2026. (Efrem Lukatsky/AP Photo)Trump maintains he wants to see the Russia-Ukraine war come to an end. But, he has said in recent days that he believes Zelensky should resign, that the Ukrainian president does not want the war to end, and that the country should hold elections. In reality, Zelensky has agreed to several ceasefires pushed by Trump and to hold elections during that time if Russia were to agree to allow them, whereas Russian leader Vladimir Putin has frequently disregarded those overtures in favor of additional attacks.
Trump came into his second administration having promised to end the war in one day. From very early on, his administration’s stance was noticeably different from that of its predecessor. No longer was the U.S. most interested in helping an ally defeat an adversary — it was instead prioritizing brokering a peace agreement between the sides, only one of which actually has the power to end the war.
“The bottom line is, Putin started this war, and the war would end if he stops fighting,” retired Gen. Philip M. Breedlove, former commander of U.S. European Command and NATO supreme allied commander Europe, told the Washington Examiner. “If Mr. Putin stops fighting, the war ends. If Mr. Zelensky stops fighting, Ukraine ends. And so we need to keep that in mind.”
“It’s not airplanes, it’s not bombs. The most important thing that we should give Ukraine right now is [for] the U.S. president to stand up to Putin and tell him to stop, not ask him, not beg him, tell him to stop,” he explained.
The Ukrainian military has been forced to overhaul its procurement process and defense industrial base as the war evolved over the last five years or so. The conflict has been the front line for drone and autonomous systems to iterate and develop, but they have still relied on the U.S. and European allies for more sophisticated support, largely air defense. But it’s an area the U.S. military is already short on, having reduced its stockpiles during the Iran war.
Zelensky has brought up the idea of Ukraine getting the license to co-produce Patriot interceptor missiles, but the country has yet to finalize such a plan. Without this agreement, U.S. intel, and any reduction in U.S. military support, it will have devastating effects for Ukraine, as it will largely be defenseless against Russian ballistic missile attacks.
“I wouldn’t be able to put a percentage on how much less effective Ukraine’s air defenses would become without knowing its interceptor inventories, engagement rates, and the nature or origin of the intelligence being provided, but the operational consequences are pretty straightforward,” VerGow, who is now with the Atlantic Council, added. “Like any scenario where there are finite resources, commanders have to become more selective about what and where they defend, and that can force hard decisions about troop disposition and employment.”
“Regarding intelligence, with less warning, they would have less time to respond. When you combine those problems, you make it easier for an adversary to impose costs on forces, infrastructure, and even civilians,” he continued.
Can Congress do anything about it?
Several members of both parties have criticized the Starshield interruption and the president’s decision to waive new sanctions against Russia and tariffs on top buyers of Russian energy that would have taken effect under the Graham Act he signed last month.
Nine senators, five Democrats and four Republicans, signed a letter to the Department of War Office of the Inspector General last week urging an investigation into whether U.S. officials deliberately ordered Ukraine’s access to Starshield to be reduced, and, if so, who exactly gave the order.
“The Office of Inspector General has received the letter and we are in the process of preparing a response,” a spokesperson told the Washington Examiner on Friday. The office has not yet announced whether it would begin a review.
The inspector general is not required to launch an investigation when members of Congress request one; however, they are if Congress puts it into law.
“Well, I certainly support investigating what was the source of that decision, if, in fact, it was a decision at all,” Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-ND), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said on CBS’s Face the Nation, adding, “It may very well have been some sort of a technical glitch. I don’t know for sure or whose call it was. So far, nobody’s taking credit for making that call or the blame for it. So, I do support some sort of an investigation.”
Zelensky also spoke with lawmakers on Monday to discuss the situation.
Cramer was among a group of senators who recently traveled to Ukraine as part of a congressional delegation and met with Zelensky. The delegation, which included Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS), the chairman of the armed services committee, pitched Zelensky on a plan that would give Ukraine additional access to Starshield to target Russian capabilities deep inside Russian territory in exchange for not targeting energy infrastructure, which has impacted the global economy.
“President Zelensky was enthusiastic about it,” Cramer said. “He said, ‘I can do that tomorrow. I would absolutely stop attacking Russia’s energy facilities if I could have access to targeting capabilities’ — which is what Starshield would provide them — ‘to go deep into Russia and attack their attackers.’ In other words, their launch facilities.”
TRUMP SAYS ZELENSKY ‘DOESN’T WANT TO END THIS WAR’ AND DEFENDS RUSSIA STRATEGY
Wicker, for his part, said in a lengthy social media post: “The day after we left Kyiv, Putin launched a barrage of missiles and drones against the city. He has since launched more—in direct violation of President Trump’s declaration of an energy ceasefire, which Ukraine observed in vain for several days.”
Four Democratic senators sent a letter dated Monday to SpaceX with a list of questions about whether the restrictions were deliberate and, if so, who ordered them.
