Starlink access and intelligence sharing

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told Fox News on Wednesday, 21 October, that access to Starlink and its military version, Starshield, remains limited in Ukraine. He said US Secretary of State Marco Rubio promised to work with his team to unblock the issue, and Zelensky said he expected it to be done. Zelensky also confirmed that Washington has resumed passing intelligence to Ukraine, including warnings about ballistic missile attacks. He argued that the restriction has made it harder to defend against Russian strikes, including Shahed-type drones, because Ukrainian interceptor drones that protect cities and villages rely on Starlink. Satellite links also matter to residents of towns near the front, who face Russian artillery fire and drone attacks.

Rubio on the Wall Street Journal report

Rubio, speaking in India on Wednesday, said Starlink is a commercial product and that decisions about its availability belong to SpaceX. He said the Trump administration did not order any restrictions, but declined to say what administration officials may have known. His remarks responded to a Wall Street Journal report that Elon Musk, the owner of SpaceX, was behind the decision to limit access. According to that report, Musk discussed the matter with Trump after it became public and, according to at least one source, before it became public. Rubio said it was not true that the administration knew about the restriction earlier or directed it in any way. He also said the US government does not have full control over private companies' decisions about their products.

Rubio defends US support for Ukraine

Rubio told reporters in India on Wednesday that Ukraine would not exist as a sovereign state without American help, including aid given under the Trump administration.

“If it were not for the assistance of the United States, including under the Trump administration, there would be no Ukraine right now.”

On Tuesday, Rubio had denied that Washington has a deliberate political directive to harm Ukraine. He acknowledged, however, that deliveries of interceptor missiles could be delayed while other US military needs are assessed. He also rejected accusations that the United States would refuse to provide warnings about Russian attacks.

Talks on Donbas and a possible leaders' meeting

Rubio described the negotiations as difficult, with the future of eastern Donbas as one of the main sticking points. He said several proposals have been put forward to bring the two sides closer, and that both would have to give up something. Ukraine's main priority, he said, is long-term security guarantees that reduce the risk of another Russian invasion. Zelensky said on Tuesday in Oslo that talks with US special envoy Steve Witkoff, covering information exchange and Starlink access, had gone well. Witkoff's mission is meant to prepare a trilateral meeting of the leaders of the United States, Ukraine and Russia, to settle questions that need top-level decisions, including territorial disputes.

Witkoff's meeting with Putin

Witkoff met Russian President Vladimir Putin in St Petersburg on Wednesday and presented the proposals agreed in Oslo by the United States, Ukraine and European partners. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Putin would study them. Witkoff also asked Putin to back a resumption of trilateral talks, even if they were held at a technical level. Kremlin adviser Yuri Ushakov had said beforehand that Witkoff would speak with Putin in Petersburg. Witkoff confirmed that Russia has been officially invited to the next G20 meetings held in the United States. Rubio said that, based on Witkoff's report, the meeting with Zelensky was positive, but he stressed that the talks remain complicated, since a war that was easy to resolve would have ended long ago.