Zelenskyy: Starshield speeds are being throttled again across Ukraine's front line

Ukraine's Starshield access has been throttled again. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on X that the military version of Starlink has faced 'systematic speed restrictions' for several days, hitting terminals along the entire front line and in Russian-occupied territory.

The rules are blunt: any terminal moving faster than 161 km/h (100 mph) drops off the satellite network. After briefings from his defense minister and top commander, Zelenskyy said Ukraine's military investigated and ruled out random errors. 'Unfortunately, this is helping the Russians kill more Ukrainians and carry out more accurate strikes against Ukraine,' he wrote, adding that Kyiv is 'trying to establish all the circumstances with the American side.'

The throttle bites hardest on interceptor drones, which lean on Starshield to hunt Russia's jet-powered Shahed drones — aircraft that can hit 500 km/h (310 mph). Catching them at 100 mph doesn't work, and Zelenskyy said some strikes have already landed because Ukraine's interceptors couldn't fly fast enough.

The timing raised eyebrows. US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner landed in Moscow the same day for talks with Vladimir Putin, and they're expected to meet Zelenskyy later at a summit in Ireland.

It's a rerun. On October 14, Ukraine's military found speeds capped at roughly the same threshold, while Trump publicly blamed Ukraine's strikes on Russian refineries for high US fuel prices ahead of the midterms. Reuters, citing US officials, reported the order came from inside the White House; days later the Wall Street Journal reported that Musk personally ordered the slowdown, possibly after talking with Trump. Trump denied any role.

Musk's story shifted — he first said Starshield is 'owned and controlled by the US government,' then claimed Ukraine violated Starlink's terms of service. Speeds came back on October 24, reportedly after Trump called Musk and asked him to lift the caps amid bipartisan pressure from lawmakers. Three weeks on, no one has claimed responsibility for the new slowdown.