Trump says Starshield is back in Ukraine after Musk restored Starlink access, but problems persist

Summary

US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that the Starshield military communications system is "back" in Ukraine and that SpaceX CEO Elon Musk had restored Ukraine's Starlink access amid the Russia war. Al Jazeera reports that Trump declined to comment on the process that led Starlink to lift speed and access restrictions, and The Hindu reports that he declined to say whether he had contacted Musk. The Hindu also reports that Musk had said "any limits on speed or usage" of Starshield, which his SpaceX company operates, were "decided by the U.S. military and ultimately POTUS." RTÉ reports that Ukraine said it was still having problems using the service a day after Trump's remarks. France 24 reports that Kyiv had complained of limits on its access, that Trump administration officials and their allies have blamed each other for the restrictions, and that a European official said the restrictions were still not over in Ukraine as of Thursday.

Timeline

1. NDTV

   22 Oct 2026, 21:47 UTCSource ↗

   NDTV reports that Trump said Thursday the Starshield military communications system is "back" in Ukraine.

2. RTÉ

   23 Oct 2026, 00:27 UTCSource ↗

   RTÉ reports that Ukraine said it was still having problems with the Starshield service a day after Trump said Musk had restored access.

3. Al Jazeera

   23 Oct 2026, 01:46 UTCSource ↗

   Al Jazeera reports that Trump said Musk restored Ukraine's Starlink access amid the Russia war and declined to comment on the process that led Starlink to lift speed and access restrictions.

4. The Hindu

   23 Oct 2026, 04:54 UTCSource ↗

   The Hindu reports that Trump said Starshield was restored in Ukraine but declined to say whether he contacted Musk, and that Musk said limits on Starshield speed or usage were decided by the U.S. military and ultimately POTUS.

5. France 24

   23 Oct 2026, 06:22 UTCSource ↗

   France 24 reports that Trump said Ukraine's Starshield access had been restored after Kyiv reported limitations, and that a European official said the restrictions were still not over as of Thursday.