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SpaceX Restores Starlink Service in Ukraine After Restrictions
· Confirmed
In Short: SpaceX has restored high-speed Starlink and Starshield service in Ukraine after restrictions that lasted about 10 days, according to Ukrainian officials and Elon Musk.
SpaceX has restored high-speed Starlink and Starshield service in Ukraine after restrictions that Ukrainian officials say lasted about 10 days, according to Elon Musk and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Musk acknowledged on Saturday that SpaceX had throttled Starlink in Ukraine, disrupting operations that the country relies on to defend itself against Russia.
Musk defended SpaceX's role in bolstering Ukraine's defenses since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. He stated that Ukraine had violated Starlink terms of service and used it for offensive drone strikes to kill people, a claim that Ukrainian officials dispute.
Ukraine's Defense Minister Yevhenii Khmara said Saturday that Starlink and Starshield connectivity had been restored, with military monitoring systems recording stable connections on equipment exceeding 400 kilometers per hour. Ukrainian officials reported that the speeds were now where they needed to be, improving front-line logistics and defense against Russian jet-powered Shahed drones.
Ukraine's Ministry of Defense announced Saturday that it had regained broader access to Starlink, with connections remaining stable at speeds of 250 mph. However, a Ukrainian official told the Kyiv Independent on Oct. 22 that the military Starlink service was still operating at a speed cap of 161 kilometers per hour.
Zelenskyy and other Ukraine officials this month referred to both Starlink and Starshield when they complained that military drones lost satellite connectivity when traveling above 161 kilometers per hour (100 miles per hour). SpaceX confirmed in 2023 that it had blocked Ukraine from using Starlink with military drones, saying its contract with Ukraine did not allow offensive uses.
Musk wrote on X, claiming that Ukraine had 'violated Starlink terms of service and used it for offensive drone strikes to kill people. That loophole was closed last week.' He added that 'Starlink remains critical to the defense of Ukraine, as it is the only system that cannot be jammed or blown up, at least for now.'
Ukrainian officials have accused SpaceX of undermining the country's ability to defend itself by imposing speed limits on Starshield, the military-grade Starlink offering. Beskrestnov wrote that all Starlink terminals located over Ukrainian territory, including territories occupied by Russia, were already subject to a movement speed limit of 70 to 90 kilometers per hour.
Musk's admission on social media came after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that Ukraine's access to Starlink and Starshield satellite links had been restored to the speeds it had before restrictions that disrupted front-line operations for more than a week. Zelenskyy wrote on Telegram, 'The speeds are now where they need to be.'
What this adds
The restoration of Starlink and Starshield services in Ukraine comes after weeks of disputes over whether SpaceX had deliberately throttled the services and whether the U.S. government had requested such restrictions.
Ukraine's Defense Ministry reported that its monitoring systems recorded restored speeds and a stable connection while equipment was moving at more than 400 km/h (249 mph).
What's confirmed
- Elon Musk has said his company SpaceX restricted Ukraine's Starlink internet service, after Ukrainian officials said connectivity issues appeared to have been resolved.
- Reacting to Musk's post, Beskrestnov said that drones operating via Starlink in Ukraine had a speed restriction of 70-90km/h (43-56mph) and did not work on Russian territory.
- "[Starlink] can be used for infrastructure that is military, but it cannot be used for unequivocally offensive strikes that make it fair game to be struck back."
- "It is very strange that Elon Musk is not aware of Starlink restrictions in Ukraine." There was no immediate comment from Ukraine's defence ministry.
- Musk had earlier denied deliberately throttling Ukraine's connection, which it says hampered its ability to conduct defensive operations for more than a week.
- Starlink allows military units to co-ordinate, particularly in remote areas on the battlefield, while Starshield allows Ukrainian drone operators to see targets in real time, as well as operate interceptor drones.
- Ukraine uses both the civilian service Starlink and the more secure Starshield, depending on what communications are needed, both of which run on networks of low Earth orbit satellites launched by SpaceX.
- The Ukrainian leader said that, as well as seemingly limiting Starlink capability in Ukraine, the US had also threatened to withdraw intelligence sharing if the strikes did not stop, something Trump also denied.
- He also defended the role of SpaceX in bolstering Ukraine's defenses since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
- Musk's admission on social media came after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that Ukraine's access to Starlink and Starshield satellite links has been restored to the speeds it had before restrictions that disrupted front-line operations for more than a week.
- "Using Starlink, a civilian commercial service, for offensive drone strikes to kill people has never been allowed, nor should it be," Musk wrote on X, claiming that Ukraine had "violated Starlink terms of service and used it for offensive drone strikes to kill people. That loophole was closed last week."
- A Ukrainian soldier using Starlink satellite internet at a position at the front line Elon Musk has restored Ukraine's internet access, Donald Trump has said.
What's still developing
- WATCH: Trump defends Musk on Starlink disturbances, says he'll 'never do anything wrong' Questions have persisted since last week about who ordered the interruptions to the Musk-made satellite internet system that Kyiv has relied on for years to counter Moscow's attacks.
- However, a senior U.S. official told Reuters that “no such request was ever made by the president,” while Zelensky said on October 18 that the instruction came from the U.S. government and was technically implemented by SpaceX.
- “Consequently, it is PHYSICALLY IMPOSSIBLE for us to use commercial Starlink for deep-strike or medium-range strike operations,” Beskrestnov wrote.
- Musk's latest comments, and the seeming restoration of the service, came after US President Donald Trump said he had told the Tesla and X owner to "put it back", having repeatedly denied instructing him to limit the service.
- Kyiv has not officially commented on Musk's latest claim but Ukrainian presidential adviser Serhii Beskrestnov said his post was "very strange".