Ukraine Regains High-Speed Satellite Links for Military Drones After Week of Blackout

Ukrainian Defence Minister Yevhenii Khmara announced on Saturday that satellite connections for military equipment are stable at speeds exceeding 400 kilometres per hour. This development ended a disruption that lasted more than a week and had hindered drone operations against Russian forces. Khmara attributed the resolution to diplomatic efforts by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and direct talks with Washington.

The military relies on satellite services from Elon Musk's SpaceX for critical communications and drone missions. The specific origin of the initial restrictions remains unclear, with US President Donald Trump denying responsibility while defending Musk's role in the infrastructure. The incident has added strain to relations between Kyiv and Washington, which are already under pressure due to Trump's agreement to temporarily lift sanctions on Russian diesel and permit US imports of the fuel.

Tensions escalated earlier this month when Trump called for Ukraine to elect a new president. On Monday, he suggested that a figure other than Zelenskyy should lead negotiations for Kyiv. These remarks follow a public confrontation between the two leaders at the White House in February 2025.

The restoration of service aligns with US efforts to revive peace negotiations between Moscow and Kyiv. Negotiators from all three parties are expected to meet in Abu Dhabi in the first half of November. This marks the first major diplomatic gathering more than four years after Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed the planned talks on Friday, while Zelenskyy announced agreement on technical-level meetings.

Trump also credited First Lady Melania Trump with securing a local ceasefire in Oleshky, a town in the Kherson region occupied by Russian forces since 2022. Ukrainian and Russian statements later set the start of the ceasefire for October 27, with a humanitarian operation scheduled for October 29.

Combat operations continued during the satellite disruption. A Russian missile strike on Lozova in the Kharkiv region killed one man and wounded two others on Saturday. In Chernihiv, an attack on Friday killed a man and wounded at least 25 people. Donetsk officials reported that shelling in Kramatorsk killed one person and wounded six, including three children. In Sloviansk, Mayor Vadym Lyakh said Friday's attacks killed a 62-year-old woman and wounded four people.

Ukraine reported strikes inside Russia on Friday and into Saturday, including an attack on the Togliattikauchuk petrochemical plant in Togliatti. Mayor Ilya Sukhikh confirmed industrial damage but no casualties. Ukraine also claimed a hit on the Proton electronics plant in Oryol, which produces missile components. Regional Governor Andrei Klychkov reported three deaths in an attack on an unidentified facility in that region. Russia's Defence Ministry stated that air defences intercepted a SCALP cruise missile, four Neptune missiles, and 1,297 fixed-wing drones over a 24-hour period, figures that TASS reported but that remain unverified.