Dear readers,

I think Ukraine's drone links need published terms enforced by an accountable authority. That is the rule of law in practice: rules known before takeoff. For ten days from Oct. 14, Starshield terminals lost connection above roughly 161 km/h. Defence Minister Yevhenii Khmara reported stable connections above 400 km/h on Oct. 24.

Musk wrote on X on Oct. 24-25 that Ukraine's military had "violated Starlink terms of service" through offensive strikes. That explanation covers the commercial service and leaves the Starshield outage unexplained. Zelensky's adviser Serhii Beskrestnov disputed the allegation. On Oct. 14, Musk had assigned Starshield speed and usage decisions to the US military and president.

A person familiar with the matter told CNN that Trump called Musk to ask for full access to be restored. Trump would not confirm the call; Kyiv credited Zelensky's "direct dialogue." Poland, France and the Pentagon are among those paying for hardware and service; those payments did not prevent an unannounced change.

In my view, Europe should turn Ukraine's Oct. 22 Nokia and ICEYE letter of intent, and its own plans, into funded contracts with delivery dates. The letter is not yet a delivery contract, and the EU expects no IRIS² launches before 2029. Until alternatives arrive, I think Washington and SpaceX should publish Ukraine's permitted uses and name who can change the service.

Marcus Schuler