Starshield again restricts communications for the Armed Forces of Ukraine — Kyiv suspects pressure at negotiations, just as the US previously halted aid before the meeting in Jeddah

Ukrainian military personnel have been recording systematic restrictions on the operation of Starshield for several days along the entire front line and in temporarily occupied territories.

Senior Ukrainian officials suggested in comments to the Financial Times that the restrictions were introduced to pressure Ukraine during negotiations with russia.

What is known about the Starshield restrictions

Zelensky reported failures after reports from Defense Minister Yevhen Khmary and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Mykhailo Drapatyi. According to him, the military checked the circumstances and established that this concerns a systemic speed limitation, not random errors.

“For us, this is primarily about significantly complicating the interception of Russian jet-powered drones,” the president said. He added that there have already been hits, as interception assets are unable to catch up with the targets.

Information about new disruptions emerged after two days of negotiations between Ukraine, the US, and Russia in Abu Dhabi. On November 12, American representatives Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner arrived in Moscow for a meeting with Putin. After that, they were supposed to travel to Ireland for a meeting with Zelensky.

One of the senior Ukrainian officials told the FT that, in his opinion, Washington's actions are strengthening russia's position in the negotiations. At the same time, another source of the publication noted that the Ukrainian side does not know the reason for the restrictions, since it has not received any explanations.

Last month, Ukraine already reported communication disruptions. At that time, Musk and the Donald Trump administration shifted responsibility onto each other, after which the service's operation was partially restored.

Ukrainian military personnel during past outages told AIN that although Starshield did restore operation, the connection still remained unstable while moving. One of the interlocutors also reported that before this, in some units the connection disappeared at around 75 km/h, and after restoration it could drop at speeds over 110 km/h.

The European Commission called the reports about the restrictions concerning and the restrictions themselves unacceptable. It called for urgently restoring

In addition, on November 12, the bipartisan Ukraine support group in the US House of Representatives, which unites 105 congressmen, announced that it is demanding explanations from the Trump administration and SpaceX. In a statement published by journalist Alex Raufoglu, the group called for clarifying how and why the restrictions arose, and for immediately restoring full access to Starshield.

NEW!!! The 105-member bipartisan Congressional Ukraine Caucus is demanding answers from the Trump admin and SpaceX over the loss of Starshield access, calling for a full accounting and immediate restoration of service. ?

Against this backdrop, Ukraine is looking for other ways to provide communications for combat missions. On November 8, the head of Serhiy Prytula's foundation, Andriy Shuvalov, told AIN that with the foundation's support, an alternative solution is already being tested and a major fundraising campaign is being prepared for its purchase. This concerned a technology that Ukraine would be able to produce and develop independently.

Was support for Ukraine limited during previous negotiations?

In March 2025, the US had already suspended military aid and intelligence sharing with Ukraine. After the meeting of delegations in Jeddah on March 11, Ukraine agreed to the American proposal for a 30-day ceasefire on condition that Russia accepts it.

In the same joint statement, the US announced the immediate resumption of aid and intelligence sharing.

Ukrainian and American negotiators in Jeddah, March 11, 2025 / Office of the President of Ukraine

In October 2026, American senators proposed to Volodymyr Zelenskyy a 100-day pause on strikes against Russian energy facilities in exchange for expanding Starlink satellite communications coverage by approximately 300 km deeper into Russian territory, so that Ukraine could attack Russian missile and drone launch sites.