Ukraine says Starlink connection is stable after Musk accuses its military of breaching terms
Kyiv says its military has a stable Starlink connection ten days after access was suddenly restricted, while Elon Musk accuses Ukrainian forces of violating SpaceX's terms.
Ukraine's government says its military has a « stable connection » to Starlink, the satellite communications system, ten days after the army's ability to use it was suddenly restricted. The announcement came as SpaceX chief executive Elon Musk, whose company owns Starlink, accused the Ukrainian military of violating the company's terms of service.
The restrictions surprised Kyiv, which relies heavily on the satellite network for battlefield communications, drone operations and links to frontline units. Neither Musk nor the United States government, which operates the military version of the system known as Starshield using Starlink technology, has publicly taken responsibility for imposing the curbs. The Ukrainian government said the system was now fully functional again.
Hours after Kyiv's statement, Musk publicly accused Ukrainian forces of breaching the company's rules, citing their use of the service in connection with drone attacks. The dispute has been reported as adding to tensions between Kyiv and Washington, a relationship already strained by reports of a deal between the Trump administration and Moscow on Russian diesel imports.
The episode highlights how dependent Ukraine has become on commercial satellite infrastructure controlled by a private American company. Starlink has been central to Ukrainian communications since the early months of the full-scale Russian invasion, and any interruption raises immediate questions about military readiness and about the leverage that a single provider holds over a country at war.
It remains unclear from the available reporting what specific actions led to the restriction, or whether the access was fully restored by the same means that were cut off. Ukrainian officials have not detailed the terms they say were met, and Musk's accusation has not been independently verified in the sources available.
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