Ukraine says Starlink limits still disrupting military operations

Ukrainian drone units and defense officials say connections with Starshield, the satellite service the country uses in war, continue to fail. A Ukrainian soldier stands beside an anti-aircraft gun as air defense forces prepare to repel a Russian drone attack in Kyiv on Sept. 19. Ukrainian officials say Starlink restrictions continue to hamper military operations despite President Donald Trump’s claim that SpaceX CEO Elon Musk had restored Ukraine’s access to the service. (Efrem Lukatsky/AP) Ukrainian defense officials said Starlink, the satellite internet service the country uses for communications in its war against Russia, was still not fully functional a day after President Donald Trump said SpaceX had restored its access.

Speaking to reporters Thursday, Trump declined to confirm a news report that he had called Musk a day before and asked him to lift the restrictions. Musk is the CEO of SpaceX, which owns Starlink. Despite Trump’s comments, Ukrainian drone units and defense officials say connections with Starshield, a military-grade service using Starlink’s vast network of satellites, continued to fail throughout most of the country when drones flew faster than 100 miles an hour, The Wall Street Journal reported Friday. Serhii Beskrestnov, a defense technology adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, said Friday that forces were “not observing any lifting of restrictions on Starlink.” “There are isolated instances where a