(KYIV, UKRAINE) – European Union countries have begun building their own satellite network to serve as a full alternative to the American Starlink system, President Volodymyr Zelensky said.
Kyiv is also still waiting for confirmation that a speed restriction on the military version of the service, Starshield, has been fully lifted.
Zelensky said Europe can see that the United States is able to limit Starlink’s operation. That is why the bloc is already working on its own system.
He said the issue concerns not only Ukraine. All of Europe has seen that Washington can regulate the service and limit speed regardless of agreements and contracts.
European countries are therefore raising the question of alternatives themselves and are already making progress, he added.
He said Europeans are also users of the American satellite system and cannot ignore recent events. Zelensky expressed confidence that Europe would carry out its new project successfully.
The EU’s own secure satellite constellation, known as IRIS², is designed to provide encrypted communications for governments, militaries and emergency services.
The project envisages roughly 290 satellites in low and medium Earth orbit, with first services expected around 2029 or 2030.
Poland signed an agreement in July 2026 to join the programme as one of six main participants. Its contribution is worth nearly EUR 600 million ($700 million at current rates).
EU Defence and Space Commissioner Andrius Kubilius has said that once IRIS² is operational it will be better than Starlink. He acknowledged, however, that the bloc is not there yet.
The push for a European alternative has gained urgency after SpaceX imposed speed restrictions on Starshield over Ukraine earlier this month.
The cap cuts the data connection when a terminal moves faster than about 160 km/h. This affects Ukrainian drones used for interception and long-range strikes.
Zelensky said Starlink in Ukraine is switched off once a speed of approximately 161 km/h is reached. In EU countries, the system continued to operate at speeds above 180 km/h.
He said this showed the restrictions applied in Ukraine and not in the bloc, describing it as a planned operation.
Ukraine’s chargé d’affaires in the United States, Denys Sienik, said Kyiv is still waiting for an official response from the Pentagon and SpaceX on whether Starshield has been fully restored.
He said the situation had improved compared with two days earlier. Speed fluctuations persist, however, and Starshield technology is vital for Ukraine’s ability to defend its people and stop Russia from committing war crimes.
SpaceX owner Elon Musk has said the speed limits were determined by the US government, not his company.
US officials have said the order came from inside the White House. A senior US official said no such request was ever made by the president.
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