Veon's Ukrainian subsidiary Kyivstar has signed an agreement with SpaceX's Starlink that will deliver direct-to-cell satellite connectivity in Ukraine. In an announcement last week, Kyivstar said it expects to launch Starlink's direct-to-cell services with SMS and OTT messaging functionality in the fourth quarter of 2025 for its customers and plans to expand to voice and data in later stages.
“Kyivstar has been the backbone of Ukraine’s resilience throughout the war, and we are committed to leaving no stone unturned to keep Ukraine connected," said Oleksandr Komarov, Kyivstar CEO. "Our collaboration with Starlink is a game-changer in our journey towards achieving our ‘LTE everywhere’ ambition. We are humbled to be the operator that serves its customers with exceptional services, and the company that brings the invaluable capabilities of global technology giants to the people of Ukraine through our international partnerships."
Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, Kyivstar has built 1,895 new LTE base stations and upgraded about 13,200 existing base stations to 4G. It has added more than 4,100 residential areas to 4G coverage, noting that 95 percent of the population of territories controlled by Ukraine have access to 4G services on Kyivstar's network.
