Zelenskyy Says Starshield Speeds Back to Normal as Russia and Ukraine Trade Strikes

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on October 24 that the Starshield satellite communications system is again working at its earlier speed, ending a period of restrictions that had hampered Ukrainian military operations. Writing on Telegram, he called the change "very important and significant" for frontline logistics and for defending against jet-powered Shahed drones.

Starshield, developed by Elon Musk's SpaceX, is a military-focused service that complements the company's commercial Starlink network. Ukraine depends heavily on both. Zelenskyy said the speed is now "where we need it to be." Defense Minister Yevheniy Khmara told RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service earlier that Kyiv's monitoring had recorded restored connectivity on equipment moving faster than 400 kilometers per hour (250 mph).

A Ukrainian official familiar with the matter had said the day before that satellite links were still dropping at about 161 kilometers per hour (100 mph), which sharply limited Ukraine's defenses. The reported restrictions lasted nearly two weeks and stopped drone interceptors and other equipment from holding satellite connections at higher speeds. Khmara credited "direct dialogue and the Ukrainian president's persistent stance" for the fix.

Who imposed the limits remains unclear. Serhiy Beskrestnov, an adviser to Zelenskyy on defense technology, suggested a link to recent tensions between Kyiv and Washington, though no such link has been established. The Trump administration denies that the president or anyone in the US government requested changes. Musk has said the government controls Starshield, with decisions on speed or use made by the military and ultimately President Donald Trump.

The Wall Street Journal, citing US officials, reported earlier this week that Trump called Musk and urged him to lift the restrictions, after which communications became more reliable. Asked about it, Trump declined to comment but said, "if there is a problem, I will get it straightened out." Democratic and some Republican lawmakers in Congress have demanded to know who authorized the changes and want guarantees of reliable access for Ukraine.

The first reports of limited access came amid Ukrainian worries about other US moves that Zelenskyy and some Western allies say play into Russian President Vladimir Putin's hands. In the past two weeks, Trump announced a deal encouraging Russian diesel exports and waived sanctions that were about to take effect under a law he signed last month. He has also urged Kyiv to stop hitting Russian oil refineries, blaming those attacks for high diesel prices rather than reduced Middle East energy flows during the US-Israeli war with Iran. Zelenskyy first appeared open to a pause, but after Putin ordered strikes on Ukraine to continue, he said Kyiv was "done" with pausing unilaterally.

Fighting continued overnight. Ukraine's air defense forces said they shot down 100 of 130 drones launched by Russia, while attacks on 15 locations killed at least two people. Ukraine's General Staff said its forces hit two industrial facilities and a military airport in Russia. One facility, in Oryol about 350 kilometers southwest of Moscow, makes components for cruise and ballistic missiles. The other, in Togliatti in the Samara region, produces rubber products, a key component of solid rocket fuel.

Separately, most of Russia-occupied Crimea lost electricity in the early hours of the day, including Simferopol, Sevastopol, Yalta, Kerch and Feodosia. NetBlocks recorded an almost complete loss of connectivity. Russian-installed authorities said mobile service reached only 40 percent of the area, public electric transport was suspended in Sevastopol, and water arrived sporadically at low pressure. Sergei Aksyonov, the Russian-appointed head of the occupation administration, blamed a disruption to main power lines outside Crimea that he said resulted from a drone attack.

Ukraine has not commented, and the cause has not been independently confirmed. Ukrainian monitoring channels reported a fire at the Taman electrical substation in Russia's Krasnodar region, which supplies Crimea via the Kerch Strait. With a fifth wartime winter approaching, peace talks have stalled and the Kremlin has offered no concessions.