Elon Musk personally ordered limits on Starshield, the military version of the Starlink system used by Ukraine’s armed forces, The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday. Musk reportedly discussed the matter with U.S. President Donald Trump.
The newspaper cites U.S. officials and people familiar with the matter. According to them, since Oct. 14 Ukrainian equipment has been losing its connection to the satellite network after exceeding a speed of 160 km/h (about 100 mph).
According to the Journal, although Musk reportedly made the decision personally, he spoke with Trump about it after the slowdown came to light. One source says they also discussed it before the decision was made. Some U.S. officials believe, however, that Musk acted on his own and that Trump did not order any retaliation against Ukraine.
The president himself denied making a decision on the matter. On Monday, he told reporters he did not know who had done it and wanted to find out.
After the matter came to light, Musk wrote on the X platform that the Pentagon and “ultimately the president” decide on the restrictions. Meanwhile, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth assured reporters Tuesday that the department had not withdrawn anything, but added that Starlink has the right to decide the terms on which it provides services.
According to the Journal, SpaceX representatives lobbied at the White House to present a unified position: that the actions were taken jointly by the company and the Trump administration.
Military analyst Michael Kofman of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace told the newspaper that the restrictions continue to hamper Ukrainian strike operations and air defense. In his view, the speed limit is now below 130 km/h (about 80 mph), compared with the earlier 160 km/h.
Because of the restrictions, some Ukrainian strike and interceptor drones have become practically useless. Ukrainian officials say the restrictions have allowed Russian missiles to evade air defenses.
Ukraine’s chargé d’affaires in Washington, Denys Sienik, said Tuesday that Kyiv is still waiting for an official explanation from the Pentagon and SpaceX. Ukraine also wants to know whether full connectivity will be restored.
From Washington, Oskar Górzyński (PAP)
