Ukraine says Starlink connection 'now stable' after network limits

24 October 2026, 12: 17 BST. Updated 6 minutes ago.

Key points

• According to They additionally, russia carried out 88 air strikes using 309 glide bombs and 10, 270 kamikaze drones on Friday.
• According to Defence Minister Yevhenii Khmara, speeds of more than 400km/h were now feasible on the network, indicating that full capability had been restored.
• This meant drones would lose connection when travelling at 161km/h (100mph) or more, it remarked.
• Ukraine's military uses the network of 10, 000 low Earth orbit satellites extensively for military operations, particularly in remote areas on the battlefield.
• Russia's ministry of defence wrote on Telegram on Saturday that their air defences shot down 616 Ukrainian fixed-wing drones, striking a number of regions nationwide, including Russian-annexed Crimea.

After its military suffered days of restricted connectivity on the satellite internet network, ukraine now has a "stable connection" to Starlink, its defence minister has remarked.

Kyiv relies on the Starlink and its military-grade counterpart Starshield for piloting drones and operations within Ukraine, but last week accused US President Donald Trump of telling owner Elon Musk to place limits on it.

This meant drones would lose connection when travelling at 161km/h (100mph) or more, it remarked. Trump denied doing so before saying Musk had "put it back".

"This result is above all important for our front, for our soldiers, for the operation of drones, for logistics and for communications, " he remarked in an official note on Saturday.

Ukraine uses both the civilian service Starlink and the more secure Starshield. It musk remarked was controlled by the US military when he suggested the Pentagon could be behind the recent matters.

Russia is not authorised to employ Starlink, so when Ukraine sends long-range missiles or drones deep into Russia to hit oil refineries, the network does not work.

Meanwhile, the debacle over Starlink began last week, and emerged during a broader diplomatic row between Trump and his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky over Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil infrastructure.

Faced with midterm elections next month, Trump has waived some sanctions on Russia and agreed a accord to import Russian diesel for the US market – a move criticised by Ukraine and its European allies.

Trump remarked the strikes on Russian oil refineries. It kyiv states are crucial to stemming the main revenue source for Moscow's war effort, have pushed global rates higher.

While the attacks have had an impact on global fuel rates, rises seen this year have primarily been due to the Iran war.

As well as seemingly limiting Starlink capability in Ukraine, the US had additionally threatened to withdraw intelligence sharing if the strikes did not stop, something Trump additionally denied, zelensky remarked that. Meanwhile, fighting on the ground continues.

Sergey Aksyonov, the region's Moscow-backed governor, remarked restrictions on electricity and water had been put in place as of power cuts caused by the drone strike.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian authorities remarked they struck a missile component manufacturer, a chemical plant and an aircraft at a military airfield inside Russia previously 24 hours.

Taken together, the developments around ukraine says Starlink connection ' now stable' after network limits point to a situation that is still moving, and the coming days should bring more clarity.