Volodymyr Zelenskyy has accused SpaceX of misleading Ukraine over disruptions to its Starshield military satellite service, saying the restrictions affected operations along the entire front line. SpaceX denied making any changes. The Ukrainian president separately said US envoys had asked whether Kyiv would leave the Donbas in exchange for Nato membership or comparable security guarantees.
Kyiv seeks answers over Starshield
Zelenskyy told reporters in Kyiv on Friday that Ukrainian forces had detected disruptions for five days. He said the problem had made it harder to intercept Russian drones and that repeated checks in different areas had produced the same results. Starshield is a military satellite communications service developed by SpaceX using its Starlink technology.
Ukraine’s defence ministry raised the issue with SpaceX. According to Zelenskyy, the company told Kyiv it had imposed no restrictions and suggested a technical problem. Zelenskyy said he doubted that explanation and believed the disruption could be political. In a statement to the Financial Times, SpaceX rejected the claim and said its service had undergone no change.
Ukrainian officials reported a similar disruption in October, with service restored on 24 October. Zelenskyy said he had asked his military and diplomatic officials to raise the latest incident with SpaceX, the Pentagon and the US State Department. The cause of the reported disruption remains unconfirmed.
US envoys raised a possible Donbas withdrawal
Zelenskyy said US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner had asked whether Ukraine would withdraw from the Donbas in return for Nato membership or security guarantees modelled on the alliance’s collective defence commitments. He said details were vague. Moscow has demanded that Kyiv give up the entire eastern region, including areas Ukraine still controls.
Zelenskyy ruled out surrendering further territory and said a ceasefire would need to be backed by credible security guarantees from Western partners. Kushner said on Saturday that Washington was working to facilitate direct discussions between Russia and European countries following meetings involving US, Russian and Ukrainian representatives.
Newshub Editorial in Europe – 15 November 2026
Volodymyr Zelenskyy has accused SpaceX of misleading Ukraine over disruptions to its Starshield military satellite service, saying the restrictions affected operations along the entire front line. SpaceX denied making any changes. The Ukrainian president separately said US envoys had asked whether Kyiv would leave the Donbas in exchange for Nato membership or comparable security guarantees.
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