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Ukrainian gains in the south not linked to Starlink shutdown for Russians, says Zelensky
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy dismissed suggestions that recent territorial advances by Ukrainian forces in the south were connected to the February Starlink shutdown for Russian forces. In an interview with Tagesschau, he explained that the operation had been planned a month before the terminals were disabled.
“Let’s take this step by step. The Starlink decision is certainly positive and will be useful. At the same time, I want to thank our military — the southern operation, which liberated around 400 sq km, started a month before the Starlink decision,” Zelenskyy said, emphasizing that the two events are independent, though both are positive.
Since late January, Ukrainian forces have recaptured 400 sq km in the Oleksandrivka direction — at the junction of Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, and Dnipropetrovsk regions. Eight settlements were liberated, including six identified by ISW: Andriivka, Ostapivske, Pishchane, Nechaivka, Radisne, and Nove Zaporizhzhia, according to Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi.
