Starlink Ukraine: Russia Builds Rival Satellite Network
The starlink ukraine saga took a new turn this week as Kyiv confirmed it is in active negotiations with SpaceX, the Pentagon and the U.S. government to resolve speed restrictions on its military satellite service — while racing against a far bigger threat: Russia’s own Starlink rival.
A Ukrainian presidential adviser said SpaceX had fixed sudden outages that disrupted Ukrainian military operations earlier this month, but a speed cap on the military-grade Starshield service remained in place. Ukraine is now trying to find out whether it can switch to a separate aviation package designed for aircraft, which has no speed limit but costs far more — a price Kyiv would struggle to pay.
A Speed Cap With Battlefield Consequences
The restrictions landed suddenly and without warning, jamming up communications for units that depend on satellite internet for real-time coordination, secure chats and drone operations along the front line. Satellite internet matters beyond combat too: on many frontline positions, Starlink is the only way soldiers can call home.
Ukraine is also hunting for alternatives in case it loses access altogether, including a satellite network Amazon is building and OneWeb, the European constellation run by Eutelsat. Russian forces are already deploying electronic-warfare systems at multiple points along the front line to disrupt the network, the adviser said.
Russia’s Rassvet: “Danger No. 1”
The deeper worry, according to Kyiv, is Rassvet — the Russian satellite constellation being built as a domestic alternative to Starlink. The Ukrainian adviser called it the single biggest technological threat Russia poses right now, not only to Ukraine but to Europe as well.
He said he believes Russia is already gaining the ability to steer Shahed drones, reconnaissance drones and even cheap missiles such as the Banderol and Dan-M by satellite in real time. That would render useless the electronic-warfare network Ukraine has built across the country to jam incoming weapons. Russia already has brief windows of satellite coverage over Ukraine — 30 to 40 minutes at a time — and the adviser warned full coverage could arrive within about six months.
“If Rassvet is launched by the end of 2026 or early 2027, Russia will be able to strike targets within Ukraine virtually in real time,” Denys Sienik, the charge d’affaires at the Ukrainian Embassy in the United States, told the Atlantic Council. “This will cause more death and destruction. This is a risk to more than just Ukraine.”
Source: The Washington Post