Ukraine said Starlink and Starshield were back to pre-restriction speeds Oct. 24, after officials said limits had affected frontline operations and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk accused Ukraine’s military of using Starlink in offensive drone strikes.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said restoration began overnight and tests showed both services operating by the morning. Ukraine’s Ministry of Defence said its monitoring showed stable connectivity at movement speeds above 400 km/h.
On Oct. 19, Zelenskyy said restrictions on the services were affecting logistics, mid-range strikes and defenses against Shahed drones. The Associated Press cited Ukrainian commanders who said drones had been lost and operations interrupted during the restrictions.
Musk wrote on X that Ukraine’s military had violated Starlink’s terms and used the service in attacks. “That loophole was closed last week,” he said, without identifying the strikes or who closed it. The Associated Press interpreted his post as signaling that SpaceX had slowed Starlink in Ukraine. Musk’s message did not say who imposed the restrictions.
In an Oct. 25 Telegram post, Ukrainian defense technology adviser Serhii Beskrestnov argued that commercial Starlink terminals’ movement limits of 70–90 km/h in Ukraine, and lack of service in Russia, ruled out deep- and medium-range strikes using those terminals.
Musk’s allegation concerned commercial Starlink, while Ukraine’s restoration statements covered both Starlink and Starshield. Musk has described Starshield as a separate system controlled by the U.S. government. Reuters’ reporting attributed the order to restrict Starshield to the White House.
The publicly posted April 2025 Starlink terms say off-the-shelf service was “not designed or intended” for use with offensive or defensive weaponry. The document does not establish which terms applied to Ukrainian military terminals or whether a breach occurred. Zelenskyy said diplomatic efforts with U.S. and European partners were expected to continue the following week.
