Italian defence minister warns against limiting US support for Ukraine

Italy’s defence minister, Guido Crosetto, has warned that limiting Ukraine’s access to satellite systems and intelligence would be a “complete mistake, a major mistake”, because it could encourage Russia to continue the war. His warning in a BBC interview was about the consequences of withholding support, not a claim that President Donald Trump had ordered it. [1]

Crosetto argued that peace would come when Vladimir Putin believed Russia could advance no further. If the US deprived Ukraine of resources, he said, Putin might instead believe he could win and keep fighting. [1]

There is a specific restriction in dispute. Serhii Beskrestnov, a defence technology adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, told the Associated Press that Kyiv was in talks with SpaceX and the Pentagon to lift a speed cap on its Starshield military satellite communications service. In the application described by AP, the data connection cuts out when a terminal moves faster than 160km/h, affecting drones that rely on it. Beskrestnov said he did not know who had made or influenced the decision. [2]

Trump told reporters he had not ordered the restriction and doubted Elon Musk was behind it. He has separately denied that the US stopped sharing early-warning alerts about incoming Russian air attacks, the BBC reported. Those alerts are distinct from the Starshield communications limit. [1] [2]

Crosetto said Italy would continue military support for Ukraine “for as long as this government is in place”, while warning that parliamentary approval for further deliveries could become “more difficult” as elections approach. [1]