FROM DC, WITH LOVE

Murdoch Paper Shreds Trump and His Goons With Brutal Question

“It’s hard to believe the timing is a coincidence,” the paper said.

Rupert Murdoch’s flagship newspaper has attacked Donald Trump as Ukraine presses his administration to explain crippling disruptions to a military version of Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite network.

The Wall Street Journal editorial board unleashed on the president, 80, and his envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky reported “significant disruptions” to Starshield’s operations over the past several days. The disruptions have severely hampered Ukraine’s ability to repel Russian forces and drone attacks.

Senior Ukrainian officials told The Financial Times they believed the Starshield speed restrictions were intended to pressure Kyiv during the latest round of peace talks with Russia. One senior official said Washington appeared to be seeking to strengthen Moscow’s position, as Trump seeks to put an end to the conflict that began nearly five years ago.

“U.S. envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff landed in Moscow Thursday, and are they bearing another big gift for Vladimir Putin?” the newspaper’s editorial board asked in an opinion piece.

The paper’s editorial board said that “it’s hard to believe the timing is a coincidence” given that restrictions on Starshield “harm Ukrainian defenses and help the Russians.”

“Mr. Trump keeps pressuring Ukraine to make peace, though Kyiv has repeatedly offered to accept cease-fires,” the paper said. “Mr. Putin routinely rejects them, yet Mr. Trump keeps offering him sanctions relief and other concessions and getting nothing in return. The result is more bloodshed, not peace.”

It’s not the first time that the Ukrainian government has reported restrictions to the satellite system that its military uses to intercept drones from Russia. Speed limits were previously imposed on Starshield terminals in October, amid allegations that Musk personally ordered the restrictions.

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Trump, meanwhile, has repeatedly insisted that he has no idea who is behind the speed restrictions.

On Thursday, Zelensky said on X that “units have been recording significant disruptions to Starshield’s operations.”

“This directly affects our ability to intercept Russian jet-powered ‘shahed’ drones. These drones come from those areas, and because of the speed restrictions, we simply cannot catch up with them in time,” the Ukrainian leader said.

“We are trying to get the details from the American side, but so far, we know very little.”

“If someone in America is making decisions that basically treat Ukrainian territory as if it is not Ukrainian, then this tells us where things are going. We need to be clear and never recognize Russia’s occupation of Ukrainian territory in any way,” Zelensky added.

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A Ukrainian official told Axios that the restrictions have been ongoing for three days.

“On the first day there were 10% limitations, on the second day 50%, and today 100% of the missions fail because of restrictions,” the official said.

The Journal has not shied away from criticizing Trump throughout his second term in the White House, angering the president, who last May said the “rotten” newspaper had “gone to hell.”

The Daily Beast has contacted the Pentagon for comment.

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Isabel van BrugenFreelance Writer

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