Elon Musk has acknowledged that SpaceX restricted the speed of its Starlink satellite internet service in Ukraine, disrupting military operations, as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said access to Starlink and Starshield services had returned to normal.
Musk said the restrictions were imposed because Ukraine's military had violated Starlink's terms of service by using the civilian commercial system for offensive drone strikes. He said the loophole had been closed last week.
“Using Starlink, a civilian commercial service, for offensive drone strikes to kill people has never been allowed, nor should it be,” Musk wrote on X on Saturday.
Zelenskyy said service restoration began overnight and that speeds were sufficient by Saturday morning, improving frontline logistics and defences against Russian jet-powered Shahed drones.
Restrictions on Starshield, the military-grade version of Starlink used for Ukrainian drone operations and communications, had alarmed military commanders, who reported lost drones and disrupted missions. Musk said the US government controlled changes involving Starshield.
Ukraine's Defence Minister Yevhenii Khmara credited direct communication and Zelenskyy's diplomatic efforts with Washington for resolving the issue.
The dispute added to tensions between Kyiv and Washington. US President Donald Trump said he had not ordered the restrictions, while Vice President JD Vance suggested coordination between the White House and Musk. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth denied administration involvement.
The development came amid renewed diplomatic efforts to end the war, with Russia agreeing to resume three-way talks with the United States and Ukraine next month.
Meanwhile, cross-border attacks continued. A Russian missile strike on Lozova in Ukraine's Kharkiv region killed one person and wounded two, while Ukrainian forces struck industrial facilities in Russia's Tolyatti and Oryol.
Three people were killed in Friday's attack on an electronics plant in Oryol, according to local officials. Ukrainian drones also reached Russia's Omsk region, more than 2,000 kilometres from the Ukrainian border, striking an Ozon logistics centre without causing casualties.