Elon Musk has ordered a slowdown of the Starshield satellite network in Ukraine, which has temporarily hampered drone operations utilized by Kyiv on the battlefield, as reported by the Wall Street Journal on Tuesday. This decision surprised Ukrainian leadership and caused confusion within the Trump administration.
Both Donald Trump and the Pentagon’s chief denied issuing any official orders regarding this matter. Musk previously claimed that any restrictions on the system would ultimately be decided by the U.S. president.
The billionaire’s decision to limit the connectivity speed of Ukrainian equipment to the system implemented by his company SpaceX has rendered some of Kyiv’s drones inoperable, according to American officials speaking on condition of anonymity. Pentagon Chief Pete Hegseth assured on Tuesday that the Department of Defense had not ordered any changes related to Starshield. “Nothing has changed from our perspective. We have not issued any directive, nothing of the sort,” he stated. Trump also affirmed on Friday that he had not requested any restrictions for Starshield, saying, “I was not involved. And I don’t believe Elon was either.”
Order Originating from Inside the White House
On Friday, two American officials and one Western official familiar with the situation revealed to Reuters that the order to slow down this crucial system for the Ukrainian military originated from within the White House.
Officials indicated that leaders at the Department of Defense received a message stating that SpaceX’s Starshield service, intended for the Ukrainian military, needed to be slowed down. However, sources did not specify who made the decision or who was responsible for implementing the order.
Kyiv Left Without Starshield
Last week, Kyiv announced that its entire connectivity capacity, deemed vital for repelling the Russian invasion, had been restricted. This announcement came shortly after Trump criticized Ukraine, urging it to stop targeting Russian oil refineries. Musk suggested that the U.S. government is responsible for this slowdown, stating on social media, “Starshield systems are owned and controlled by the U.S. government. Any speed or usage limitations are decided by the U.S. military and ultimately by the U.S. president.”
New Talks Between Kyiv and Washington
Ukraine uses Starshield, the military-focused satellite service from Starlink, for communications on the battlefield, medium-range strikes against Russian-occupied territories, and for its intercepting drones. Kyiv also utilizes the civilian Starlink satellite system operated by SpaceX. Relations between Washington and Kyiv have become tense again in recent days, with Trump calling for the replacement of Volodymyr Zelensky after the Ukrainian leader harshly criticized the surprise agreement between the U.S. and Russia regarding fuel.
Discussions on Tuesday between Zelensky and Trump’s envoys resulted in mutual progress, according to both parties, as the U.S. president continues to exert pressure on his Ukrainian counterpart to secure an agreement with Moscow, AFP reports.
