SpaceX Restores Satellite Links for Ukraine's High-Speed Drones

SpaceX has lifted restrictions on satellite connectivity for Ukrainian military hardware, ending a disruption period that lasted more than seven days and degraded drone operations against Russian forces. Ukraine relies heavily on Elon Musk's company to transmit data for communications and unmanned flight missions.

Defence Minister Yevhenii Khmara announced on Saturday that Starlink and Starshield links were operating normally on equipment traveling faster than 400 kilometers per hour. He attributed the resolution to discussions with Washington and diplomatic efforts by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The identity of the party that ordered the service restrictions remains unknown, though US President Donald Trump has denied involvement.

The outage strained relations between Kyiv and Washington. Those ties were already under pressure regarding Trump's decision to temporarily lift sanctions on Russian diesel imports and permit US purchases. Trump has previously called for Ukraine to install new leadership, and earlier this week he suggested a figure other than Zelenskyy should conduct negotiations for Kyiv. These public disagreements follow a February 2025 confrontation at the White House.

Talks between the United States, Russia, and Ukraine are scheduled for the first half of November in Abu Dhabi, marking more than four years since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed the planned session on Friday, while Zelenskyy announced agreement on technical-level meetings.

A local ceasefire in Oleshky, located in the Russian-occupied Kherson region, is set to begin on October 27, with a humanitarian operation planned for October 29. Trump credited his wife, Melania Trump, with securing this arrangement.

Fighting continued over the weekend. Governor Oleh Syniehubov reported a Russian missile strike in Lozova killed a man and wounded two others on Saturday. In Chernihiv, an attack on Friday killed one person and wounded at least 25, local authorities stated. Donetsk officials said shelling in Kramatorsk killed one and injured six others, including three children, while Sloviansk Mayor Vadym Lyakh confirmed a 62-year-old woman died and four were wounded in strikes on Friday. Russia's Defence Ministry stated air defences intercepted 1,297 Ukrainian fixed-wing drones, four Neptune missiles, and one SCALP cruise missile over a 24-hour period.

No casualties were reported at the Togliattikauchuk petrochemical plant in Togliatti following a Ukrainian strike; Mayor Ilya Sukhikh confirmed industrial damage. Ukrainian officials also reported hitting the Proton electronics plant in Oryol. In the Oryol region, Governor Andrei Klychkov reported three deaths in an attack on a separate facility.