Ukraine's Pentagon-Funded Starshield Network Was Partly Disabled

A key component of Ukraine's communications network was partially disabled on Wednesday. PBS NewsHour reports that the Starshield satellite network — funded by the Pentagon and operated by Elon Musk's SpaceX — was not operating at full capacity, hampering communications within the Ukrainian military. The reporting describes a degradation rather than a clean outage, but for an army that runs much of its coordination through satellite links, partial capacity is the kind of condition that shows up first in the units least able to route around it. The arrangement itself is worth noticing: a capability paid for by the US Defense Department and run by a commercial company, which puts a private operator in the chain between a government's money and a battlefield's connectivity. Anchor Amna Nawaz discussed the developments with retired US Navy Rear Adm. Mark Montgomery.