Ukraine says Starlink and Starshield speeds are restored

Ukraine says its Starlink and Starshield satellite internet service is back to full speed. President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on X that both services were "restored to the speeds we had before the restrictions," The Verge reported.

The restrictions had hit Ukraine's military for days. Defense Minister Yevhenii Khmara said military-grade Starlink service was fully restored on October 24, about 10 days after the limits began, Ars Technica reported.

Key facts

• Zelenskiy said Starlink and Starshield were back to the speeds they had before the restrictions, The Verge reported.
• The restrictions began on October 13, 2026, throttling terminals moving faster than about 99 mph (160 km/h).
• Khmara said service was fully restored on October 24, according to Ars Technica.
• Reuters reported that Ukraine's defense ministry said the link stayed stable at over 400 km/h, according to The Verge.
• Ukrainian officials said the limits affected supply drones, reconnaissance missions and mid-range drone strikes.

What happened

Ars Technica said that on October 13, 2026, service was throttled for terminals moving faster than about 99 mph, or 160 km/h.

The effects reached below that speed. Michael Kofman of the Carnegie Endowment said the throttling made service unstable even at lower speeds like 80 mph, or 130 km/h, Ars Technica reported.

Ukrainian officials described the damage on the front. They said the limits hurt drones that supply front-line units, reconnaissance missions and mid-range strike missions, according to Ars Technica.

The timing was hard for Ukraine. Ars Technica says the disruptions came as Russia launched some of its largest drone and missile attacks yet on Ukrainian cities.

Now the service is back. Reuters reported that the defense ministry said the connection held steady at more than 400 km/h, The Verge reported.

Who ordered the limits

Who ordered the restriction, and why, is disputed and not known. Both Musk and the Trump administration deny responsibility for the limits, Ars Technica reported.

The Wall Street Journal reported that Trump called Musk to ask that the limits be lifted, according to Ars Technica. Whether the restrictions could return is not known.

Background

Starshield is the military-grade version of Starlink. Ars Technica says the US government gave Ukraine's military access to Starshield.

Many countries have paid for Ukraine's terminals. The US government, Poland and Germany have paid SpaceX for tens of thousands of Starlink terminals sent to Ukraine, Ars Technica reported.

This is not the first time SpaceX has limited the service. In February 2023, SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell confirmed the company was taking steps to stop Ukraine's military from using Starlink with drones, according to Ars Technica.

SpaceX has also acted against Russian users. In February 2026, SpaceX shut off any Starlink terminal in Ukraine not on a whitelist, Ars Technica said. That step severely disrupted Russian forces that were using smuggled terminals.

Russia has also tried to block the service. Ars Technica says Russian forces have deployed jamming systems to disrupt Starlink in Russian-occupied parts of Ukraine.

Alternatives to Starlink

Ukraine has other options, but they are smaller. It already uses Eutelsat's OneWeb, which has just over 600 satellites compared with Starlink's 10,000, according to Ars Technica.

OneWeb also costs more. The Economist reported that OneWeb terminals cost about 45 times more than Starlink terminals and are much bigger, according to Ars Technica.

Ukraine is also changing its tools. Ars Technica said Ukrainian companies and Western partners are deploying more drones that rely less on Starlink, or not at all.

What it means for you

For people following the war, the episode shows how much Ukraine's military depends on one private satellite network. A speed limit set far from the front was enough to affect supply drones and reconnaissance missions, Ukrainian officials said.

It also helps explain the push for other networks and for drones that rely less on Starlink, Ars Technica reported.

What happens next

The EU is planning its own network. The EU plans to begin launching its IRIS² constellation of 348 satellites in 2029, according to Ars Technica.

Germany has its own plan. It is building a military satellite system called SATCOMBw 4, aiming for 50 operational satellites by 2029, per Ars Technica.

For now, it is not known whether the restrictions could be put back in place.

FAQ

What is Starshield? Ars Technica describes it as the military-grade version of Starlink that the US government gave Ukraine's military access to.

What speed limit was imposed? Ars Technica says service was throttled for terminals moving faster than about 99 miles per hour, or 160 kilometers per hour.

Which missions were hurt by the limits? Ukrainian officials pointed to supply drones, reconnaissance missions and mid-range drone strikes, according to Ars Technica.

Is the service fully back? Khmara said military-grade Starlink service was fully restored on October 24, Ars Technica reported.

Who ordered the throttling? That is disputed and not known. Ars Technica reported that both Musk and the Trump administration deny responsibility.

Who paid for Ukraine's Starlink terminals? Ars Technica says the US government, Poland and Germany paid SpaceX for tens of thousands of terminals.

Is the EU building its own satellite network? Yes. The EU plans to start launching its IRIS² constellation in 2029, and Germany plans SATCOMBw 4, Ars Technica reported.

Are there alternatives to Starlink? Ukraine already uses Eutelsat's OneWeb, but it has just over 600 satellites, Ars Technica reports.