Ukraine war briefing: Zelenskyy says Starshield restrictions continue on ‘entire front line’

Volodymyr Zelenskyy has confirmed that speed restrictions remain in place on the US Starshield satellite communications system across Ukraine's entire front line, hampering military operations. The Ukrainian president said these limitations make it difficult to intercept jet-powered drones and other aerial threats, while also sending a problematic signal to Russia regarding occupied territories.

Unfortunately, the speed restrictions remain in place along the entire front line and in temporarily-occupied territories of Ukraine, Zelenskyy stated in his nightly video address on Friday. I expect the ministry of defence and the foreign ministry, together with all relevant structures in the United States, will work through this issue.

Military Impact

Zelenskyy reported on Thursday that Ukrainian military units had recorded disruptions to Starshield over several days, repeating that the restrictions limit our ability to intercept jet-powered Shaheds and counter other drones. Ukrainian officials had previously stated that Elon Musk's SpaceX had abruptly capped the speed of Starlink and its Starshield military version in mid-October amid tensions with the US over Ukrainian attacks on Russian oil refineries. Service was restored on 24 October.

The timing of these restrictions coincided with significant military developments. Russia attacked a hospital in central Kyiv near western embassies after Zelenskyy's comments, injuring three people when a drone struck the National Institute of Traumatology and Orthopedics. Meanwhile, Russia claimed to have shot down nearly 1,200 Ukrainian drones overnight, one of the largest swarms sent by Kyiv, with at least four reported killed in southern Volgograd.

Regional Escalations

The EU's foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas warned against "walking into the traps that Russia is setting," noting Moscow was attempting to divert attention from its aggression by reviving hardline security demands. "We have one aggressor and one victim, and the aggressor does not have security concerns," she stated at an EU leaders' summit in Dublin.

Russia has been targeted by apparent assassination attempts, with two car bomb attacks killing a senior military figure and injuring a suspected intelligence agent. In southern Moscow, Sergei Zavorotniy, 72, a former aide to Ukraine's exiled prime minister, was severely injured. The blast followed a similar attack in St Petersburg that killed a senior Russian military official reportedly identified as an air force colonel.

Civilian Casualties

Russian forces launched strikes on two Ukrainian cities on Friday, killing three people and injuring more than 50. In Zaporizhzhia, a five-storey apartment building was seriously damaged, and a rescue worker was killed during rubble clearance. In Odesa, two people died in an attack on a private residence, with five others injured.

Meanwhile, Ukraine's SBU security service faced internal challenges as General Serhiy Duka, suspected in a corruption case, was released from pre-trial detention after posting $1.2m bail. Duka was detained on 4 November as part of an anti-corruption operation targeting an alleged criminal group involving multiple security agencies.