The speed of the Elon Musk-owned satellite system used by the Ukrainian military has been fully restored after two weeks of restrictions, the country's ministry of defense said in a statement on Saturday.
Why it matters: The restrictions limited the Ukrainian military from using drones to intercept Russian attack drones, and from using its own drones to send supplies to soldiers on the front lines.
- The restrictions were at the center of the recent crisis between the Trump administration and the Ukrainian government.
- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky saw the restrictions as retaliation by President Trump and Musk for his refusal to halt strikes against Russian oil refineries.
- The crisis led to bipartisan criticism and pressure and generated a blame game between the White House and SpaceX founder and CEO Musk.
Catch up quick: The Ukrainian military uses SpaceX's Starlink satellite communications system to control and operate its reconnaissance and intercept drones.
- When Starlink doesn't operate at full capacity, Ukraine's ability to gather intelligence, use interceptor drones and conduct long-range strikes against Russia is impeded.
- Ukraine relies on two satellite systems: One is SpaceX's Starlink, which it uses for communications, ground forces, logistics and defensive drones — ones that shoot down incoming drones.
- The other is Starshield, which is controlled by the U.S. government and used for offensive military purposes.
- President Trump denied that the White House was involved in restricting the system and for several days claimed it was fully back on.
- On Friday Trump denied reports that he spoke to Musk, but said that if the system was still restricted he would speak to Musk about it.
What they are saying: "Our monitoring systems are detecting a restoration of Starlink/Starshield speeds. We are recording speeds exceeding 400 kilometers per hour, with stable connectivity," the Ukrainian ministry of defense said.
- The ministry said the restrictions were lifted as a result of "direct dialogue" and "firm stance at the highest level" by Zelensky.