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Starlink satellite internet service in Ukraine has yet to return to normal, Vladimir Zelensky complained on October 18, claiming that restrictions imposed by the United States remain in place.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio rejected the allegations, insisting that Washington had never ordered any restrictions on Starlink operations in Ukraine.
Rubio dismissed suggestions that American authorities had deliberately slowed down the satellite communication terminals. He argued that the disruptions were not intentional and questioned whether Zelensky fully understood the situation.
The secretary of state also emphasized that neither the White House nor President Donald Trump had authorized any artificial reduction in Starlink internet speeds for Ukrainian users.
The dispute follows reports of serious connectivity problems affecting Ukrainian military operations.
On October 14, Ukrainian servicemen reported that Starlink terminals installed on fast-moving unmanned aerial vehicles had begun losing their connections when the drones reached speeds of approximately 160 kilometers per hour.
According to the Ukrainian military personnel, the communication failures forced the armed forces to cancel several drone operations.
Despite Zelensky’s insistence that American restrictions remain in effect, Rubio maintained that no instructions to deliberately limit Starlink performance had been issued by the US government.