Ukraine Says Starlink Connection Is Stable Again After Days of Restrictions

Ukraine says its access to Starlink is stable again after several days in which its military had to cope with restricted connectivity on the satellite internet network. Defence Minister Yevhenii Khmara announced the change in a statement on Saturday.

Khmara said speeds of more than 400km/h are once more possible on the network, a sign that 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.

Kyiv depends on Starlink and its military-grade counterpart Starshield to pilot drones and run operations inside Ukraine. Last week, Ukrainian officials accused US President Donald Trump of instructing Starlink owner Elon Musk to impose limits. Under those limits, drones reportedly lost their connection when travelling at 161km/h (100mph) or faster. Trump denied giving such an instruction, but later said Musk had "put it back".

Ukraine's military makes extensive use of the network of 10,000 low Earth orbit satellites, especially in remote parts of the battlefield. It uses both the civilian Starlink service and the more secure Starshield. Musk has said Starshield is controlled by the US military, and suggested the Pentagon could be behind the recent problems.

Russia is not authorised to use Starlink. As a result, the network does not function when Ukraine sends long-range missiles or drones deep into Russian territory to hit oil refineries.

The dispute emerged during a wider diplomatic row between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky over Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil infrastructure. With midterm elections due next month, Trump has waived some sanctions on Russia and agreed a deal to import Russian diesel for the US market. Ukraine and its European allies have criticised that move.

Trump argues that the strikes on Russian refineries have pushed global prices higher. Kyiv says the attacks are crucial to cutting the main source of revenue for Moscow's war effort. The strikes have affected global fuel prices, though increases seen this year are mainly due to the Iran war. Zelensky said that, besides apparently limiting Starlink in Ukraine, the US also threatened to withdraw intelligence sharing if the strikes did not stop. Trump denied that as well.

Fighting continues on the ground. Russia's defence ministry said on Telegram on Saturday that its air defences shot down 616 Ukrainian fixed-wing drones, which struck a number of regions including Russian-annexed Crimea. The region's Moscow-backed governor, Sergey Aksyonov, said restrictions on electricity and water were introduced because the drone strike caused power cuts.

Ukrainian authorities said that in the past 24 hours they hit a missile component manufacturer, a chemical plant and an aircraft at a military airfield inside Russia. They also said Russia carried out 88 air strikes on Friday, using 309 glide bombs and 10,270 kamikaze drones.