Ukraine Satellite Links Run at 400 km/h After Slowdown

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on 24 October that restrictions on the Starlink and Starshield satellite systems had been lifted by that morning. Speaking in a video address, he thanked those who helped restore the country's communications. "Starlink and Starshield are back to operating at the speeds they were capable of before these restrictions were imposed. Now we have the speed we need," he said.

Speeds began climbing overnight and met military requirements by morning, Zelenskyy said, adding that the change matters for logistics along the front and for defending against jet-powered Shahed drones. Before his remarks, Ukrainian defence forces and Ministry of Defence experts had logged both systems running above 161 km/h. The ministry later confirmed speeds above 400 km/h and a stable connection.

The recovery followed several days of degraded service. Zelenskyy had reported days earlier that Starlink and Starshield equipment was operating at 130 to 161 km/h in parts of the contact line, which he said slowed logistics and limited the use of drones. On 16 October, US President Donald Trump said the White House had no role in restricting Ukraine's access to the systems. The Telegraph reported separately that SpaceX CEO Elon Musk had raised the idea of limiting bandwidth on the networks used by the Ukrainian military with Trump.

The systems are operating at speeds above 400 km/h, according to the Ministry of Defence confirmation issued after Zelenskyy's address.