Senators seek Pentagon probe into Ukraine's Starshield outage

Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) announced he and Senate colleagues will request a Defense Department inspector general investigation into Ukraine's sudden loss of access to Starshield, the military version of Starlink, which hampered Ukraine's ability to intercept Russian drones. Tillis said the disruption appears to have originated within Department of Defense Starshield systems rather than with Starlink or SpaceX, and he criticized Defense Secretary Hegseth for lacking transparency. He stated the lapse placed Ukrainian civilians and U.S. personnel at unnecessary risk without warning. Other lawmakers, including Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) and Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.), blamed President Trump and Elon Musk or the administration's intelligence-sharing cuts. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called the loss a "big mistake," warning people would die if attacks continue without the network functioning.