Shares of French Satellite Group Eutelsat soared this week as SpaceX's Starshield drew criticism after the Ukrainian military's access to its systems was suddenly restricted.
Earlier this week, tensions rose between the U.S. and Ukraine after Kyiv accused Elon Musk's SpaceX of imposing new restrictions on its military-grade Starlink internet service without warning, curbing connectivity and limiting Ukraine's ability to defend itself against Russian attacks.
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy criticized the U.S., saying "Starlink was switched off" in the middle of the night, preventing Ukrainian drones from intercepting Russian attacks, and ultimately contributing to civilian deaths.
"They knew what they did," Zelenskyy said. "It's not about attack. It's also about defending the lives… People were killed because not enough destroying, not enough interceptors, including interceptors with Starlink, which didn't work."
SpaceX CEO Elon Musk responded by shifting blame on the U.S. government and said that Starshield systems were under Washington and President Donald Trump's control.