SpaceX imposed a speed limit on Starlink terminals in motion overnight from Tuesday to Wednesday, 14 October, according to Ukrainian presidential adviser Serhiy Beskrestnov. Kyiv says the military received no warning and some missions were disrupted.
Beskrestnov, the presidential adviser on defence technology, wrote on Telegram that the restriction applies to the Starshield military package and is set at 100 mph, or about 161 km/h. Terminals moving faster lose connection. As reported by Ukrainska Pravda, the adviser said the defence forces were not notified, which led to the failure of many missions.
“It is obvious that this action cannot be accidental and is linked to the current political situation.” — Serhiy Beskrestnov, adviser to the President of Ukraine
Where the restrictions became known
The first report of the problems came from Ukrainian volunteer Serhiy Sternenko, a former adviser to the defence minister. According to him, connectivity began to drop after speeds exceeded 160 km/h, while standard Starlink terminals work normally. As Meduza reports, citing Ukrainska Pravda, the restriction affected Starshield, a faster version used by drone operators. A military source explained that standard terminals on drones work up to about 160 km/h, which is not enough for some tasks.
Ukrainska Pravda also writes that the limit was later reportedly tightened to 60–70 km/h. This has not been confirmed by Beskrestnov.
Political context and Sikorski's reaction
Sternenko suggests that SpaceX may have acted at the request of Donald Trump’s administration. This is a conjecture, without confirmation. Cybernews and the Militarnyi portal link the matter to US pressure on Kyiv to halt strikes on Russian refineries; this too is an interpretation, not an established fact. In the available reports SpaceX has not commented, and Ukrainian authorities have not disclosed the scale of the problem.
Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski responded to the reports. He wrote on X to Elon Musk: “Hey, Elon Musk, great man, are you playing politics with your products again?” Interia also reports that Sikorski added: “We are watching you.”
This is not the first dispute over Starlink’s role in the war, but this time it concerns the Starshield military package. We previously wrote about the company, now listed on the stock exchange: after the SpaceX debut and Musk’s status as a billionaire.
What it means
The limit affects drones and vehicles moving faster than about 160 km/h that use Starshield. Standard terminals, according to Sternenko and Militarnyi, operate without disruption. The scale of the impact on the front is not known. For Poland, it is another argument in the debate about the dependence of countries supporting Ukraine, including its communications, on a private company. The key questions are SpaceX’s position, any possible reaction from Washington, and whether the limit will be maintained or tightened.
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