A bipartisan group of senators on Thursday demanded an investigation into disruptions to critical satellite communications and intelligence-sharing systems in Ukraine that they warned had undermined the country’s defenses against Russian attacks and endangered U.S. military and diplomatic personnel.
In a letter to the Pentagon, the lawmakers, led by Senator Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, the top Democrat on the Foreign Affairs Committee, called on the Defense Department’s inspector general to determine whether the Trump administration or its contractors were responsible for the disruptions, including temporary restrictions on Ukraine’s ability to use a Pentagon-funded satellite program known as Starshield. That system, the military version of SpaceX’s Starlink, is used by Ukrainian military officials to detect and intercept Russian missiles and drones.
“We are particularly alarmed by incidents in which U.S. diplomatic, military and security personnel were unable to reach designated bunkers during Russian air raids, amid reported disruptions to intelligence-sharing and early-warning capabilities,” the senators wrote.
Republican Senators Thom Tillis of North Carolina, Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and John Cornyn of Texas signed the letter. Ms. Shaheen was also joined by fellow Democratic Senator Jack Reed of Rhode Island, the ranking member of the Armed Services Committee, as well as Senators Richard J. Durbin of Illinois, Chris Coons of Delaware and Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut.
They aired their concerns after Ukrainian military officials said on Wednesday that they had lost critical access to the service with no warning.
Ukrainian officials were caught off guard by the sudden restrictions, according to a U.S. official in Ukraine who was briefed on the disruptions and spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive security matters. The official said that Ukrainian authorities were deeply frustrated by the unexpected throttling of the service, which disrupted drones and aircraft, including systems used to defend against Russian aerial attacks. The official added that Ukraine was worried about similar disruptions occurring.
The episode also has raised questions about the safety of U.S. personnel in Ukraine, where Russian attacks have intensified in recent days. Separate technical problems affecting intelligence used to provide warnings of incoming attacks have left Americans with insufficient time to reach designated bomb shelters, according to the official, who said that heightened security precautions had been put in place given the hampered ability to defend against such strikes.
The official emphasized that there was no evidence that intelligence-sharing problems resulted from a deliberate decision to withhold information. But the official said the combination of unreliable early warnings and restrictions on the satellite communication network that runs Ukraine’s air defenses had created an especially dangerous environment for Americans.
The senators are seeking to determine whether the outages were connected, and whether Pentagon officials authorized, approved or knew in advance about any changes to the service.
“Given the potentially deadly consequences, these incidents require immediate investigation,” the group wrote.
The senators also asked whether SpaceX had acted alone and independently imposed the restrictions, and whether doing so would be a violation of its contractual obligations when it initially began providing the service.
“Any restrictions on these capabilities, particularly without advance notification, raise serious questions about the Department of Defense’s contractual oversight and its responsibility to ensure continuity of essential services,” they wrote.
Starlink and its military-focused counterpart, Starshield, have become essential components of Ukraine’s battlefield communications infrastructure. Some of the services are provided through contracts administered by the U.S. Space Force, according to the letter.
The senators requested that investigators preserve communications and contractual records involving the Pentagon, SpaceX and other agencies, and provide an initial briefing no later than Nov. 1.
“The possibility that American personnel were endangered by preventable disruptions, inadequate coordination or decisions made by their own government demands immediate scrutiny and accountability,” they wrote.
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