Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says Kyiv asked Trump to enable Starlink inside Russia to target ballistic missile launchers

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine asked President Donald Trump and SpaceX to enable Starlink inside Russia so Ukrainian forces could target Russian ballistic missile launchers.

Zelenskyy made the remarks in an in-person interview with Piers Morgan recorded at Morgan’s London studio and released on October 14. “We asked SpaceX and President Trump to open Starlink on the territory of Russia to give us a chance to destroy Russian ballistic missile launchers,” he said. “Only this. It was always closed for us.”

He said Ukraine is also facing a 161-kilometer-per-hour speed limit affecting satellite connectivity used by its drones. Zelenskyy said some Russian jet-powered Shahed drones travel at 450 to 550 kilometers per hour or faster, leaving Ukrainian interceptor drones unable to use the system at the speeds needed to pursue them.

“Technically, it’s not a mistake. It’s limited because it’s a decision,” Zelenskyy said. He later appealed to the U.S.: “Just give us back Starlink.” He said Ukraine would continue defending itself without it but questioned why the restrictions were imposed.

The terminology around the restriction remains contested. Zelenskyy referred to Starlink, while AP and Reuters have reported that the 160-kilometer-per-hour limit affects Starshield, the military satellite service used by Ukrainian forces. SpaceX founder Elon Musk has said Starshield is controlled by the U.S. government. Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio have denied ordering a slowdown, while Reuters reported that an instruction to limit Starshield originated inside the White House without identifying who issued it.

Zelenskyy also criticized the Trump administration’s waiver of provisions in the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act. He said the late Republican senator had invested heavily in building congressional support for the legislation and expressed hope that other U.S. lawmakers would continue backing it.

Asked whether he would run if Ukraine held a presidential election during the war, Zelenskyy said he would. “If it will be during the war, of course, it’s my responsibility,” he said, adding that suggestions he does not want elections are “not true” and “not fair.”

Zelenskyy also called Russian President Vladimir Putin “a killer” and said his feelings about recent U.S. decisions had not changed when asked whether he still felt betrayed by Trump and the United States.