In brief
Ukraine's defense minister announced that the satellite internet service Starlink is now fully operational, following claims that former U.S. president Donald Trump had instructed Elon Musk to throttle the service. The restriction had forced drones below 100mph to lose signal, compromising operations. An official said speeds above 400km/h are now possible, restoring critical communications, drone control and logistics for the front lines. The incident sparked diplomatic tension between Kyiv and Washington amid rising Russian attacks. Meanwhile, fighting continues with new outages reported in Crimea and casualties in Kharkiv.
Ukraine Re‑establishes Stable Starlink Link After Restrictions Lifted
Ukraine now has a "stable connection" to Starlink, its defence minister said, after a week of restricted connectivity on the satellite network.
The country relies on both Starlink and its military‑grade counterpart Starshield to pilot drones and conduct operations. A week ago, Kyiv accused former U.S. President Donald Trump of asking Elon Musk to impose limits on the service.
The alleged throttling meant drones lost connectivity at speeds above about 100mph. Trump denied this was his intent before saying Musk had "put it back".
Defence Minister Yevhenii Khmara said that drone speeds of more than 400km/h are now possible, signalling full capability has been restored. "This result is, above all, important for our front, for our soldiers, for the operation of drones, for logistics and for communications," he said.
Ukraine employs a network of over 10,000 low‑Earth‑orbit satellites for military purposes, especially in remote battlefield zones. The civilian Starlink service and the more secure Starshield—controlled by the U.S. military—are integral to Ukraine’s command and control structure.
Russia is not authorised to use Starlink; thus missions that reach deep into Russian territory lose satellite connectivity when approaching targets like oil refineries.
The Starlink row unfolded during a broader diplomatic standoff between Kyiv and Washington, sparked by Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil infrastructure. Trump, facing midterm elections, had eased some sanctions on Russia and agreed to import Russian diesel for the U.S. market—a move criticised by Ukraine and its allies.
Zelensky argued that the U.S. had also threatened to withdraw intelligence sharing unless the strikes stopped. Trump denied these accusations.
Fighting on the ground continues. Russian authorities reported power cuts in Crimea after a Ukrainian drone attack, while separatist forces claimed casualties in a separate strike in Kharkiv.
