Amid disputes over restrictions on the Ukrainian military’s use of SpaceX’s satellite communications, US President Donald Trump stated that the company’s CEO, Elon Musk, had restored Kyiv’s previous access to Starlink. The Ukrainian military relies heavily on this system.
“He’s put everything back the way it was,” Trump told reporters on 22 October. A few hours earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had confirmed in an interview with CNN that the country was still facing problems using the service.
A Ukrainian official familiar with the situation told Radio Free Europe that some military units had noticed an increase in connection speed, but the improvement had not been felt everywhere.
According to the source, the speed is still insufficient to intercept Russian jet-powered drones. In recent months, Russia has been using them increasingly against Ukraine, causing significant damage to logistics, the energy sector and civilian infrastructure.
Earlier, Ukraine’s Chargé d’Affaires ad interim in the US, Denys Senyk, told Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty that Kyiv had received no response on this matter from either the Pentagon or SpaceX. “The speed restrictions have not been lifted,” Senyk stated.
Zelenskyy said he hoped to discuss the issue with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in the coming days. Rubio had previously denied that Trump or any other representative of the US administration had demanded changes to how the systems operate.
The controversy surrounding Starlink and its military counterpart, Starshield, has raised questions about who ordered the restrictions, whether the Trump administration was aware of them in advance, and how the changes have affected Ukraine’s ability to defend itself against Russian attacks.
A congressional delegation that recently visited Kyiv stated that the restrictions had weakened Ukraine’s air defences and endangered the lives of Ukrainian civilians and American personnel.
When reports first emerged on 13–14 October of disruptions to Starshield — the military version of SpaceX’s Starlink service, on which Ukraine relies heavily for protection against Russian air strikes — the country found itself particularly vulnerable.
Democrats and some Republicans have called for an investigation into the system’s slowdown.
The day before, The Wall Street Journal, citing US officials, reported that Trump had spoken on the phone with SpaceX founder Elon Musk and asked him to lift the speed restrictions on Starshield.
According to the publication’s sources, shortly after the conversation between Trump and Musk on Thursday, the satellite communications began to operate more reliably. Journalists note that the system has not yet returned to full functionality, but the speed is already higher than it was under the previous restriction.
SpaceX chief Elon Musk wrote on the social media platform X that speed and usage restrictions on Starshield are set by the US military, whilst the final decision rests with the President.
Meanwhile, on 20 October, Pentagon chief Pete Hegset told journalists that the US had not issued any orders to restrict Starshield’s operations for Ukraine.
Reports of restrictions on Starlink emerged after Trump announced an agreement with Russian leader Vladimir Putin to temporarily exempt Russian diesel fuel from sanctions and supply it to the global market. Furthermore, Trump demanded that Ukraine cease strikes on Russian oil refineries.
Ukraine needs to have its Starlink speed restrictions lifted or, at the very least, have the limit raised to 450 km/h, according to sources cited by Radio Free Europe. According to sources cited by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty journalist Alex Raufoglu, the current speed limit of 160 km/h is insufficient to counter jet-powered drones such as the Shahed. The service contract runs until April 2027 and is funded by Germany.