Musk ordered Starlink slowdown in Ukraine
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The gist
The Wall Street Journal reported that SpaceX CEO Elon Musk ordered a slowdown of Ukraine's military-grade Starlink.
The cap hit Ukrainian drone missions and left Kyiv and Washington trading explanations.
Background
Elon Musk is the founder and CEO of SpaceX, the company that owns and controls Starlink, the commercial satellite service Ukraine uses for battlefield communications and drone operations. The Wall Street Journal reported, citing US officials and people familiar with the matter, that Musk ordered a slowdown of a military-grade version of the service, capping connection speeds so some offensive and interceptor drones were rendered virtually useless. The episode comes amid a breakdown in US-Ukraine ties: both Musk and Trump have voiced anger at Ukrainian attacks on Russian diesel refineries, which the president blames for high energy prices.
How it unfolded
- Oct 14, 2026Musk posted on X that Starshield systems are owned and controlled by the US government and that any speed or usage limits are decided by the US military and ultimately the president.
- Oct 17, 2026Axios reported a Ukrainian official saying SpaceX calls it a technical problem, company contacts say it comes from the White House, and the White House says it is Elon.
- Week before Oct 20, 2026Musk capped the speeds at which Ukrainian hardware could stay connected to the satellite network, rendering some offensive and interceptor drones virtually useless.
- Oct 19, 2026Trump said he did not know who ordered the Starlink interruption, adding: "But I'd like to find out."
- Oct 20, 2026The Wall Street Journal reported, citing US officials and people familiar with the matter, that Musk ordered the slowdown, sparking panic in Kyiv and confusion inside the Trump administration.
- Oct 20, 2026Zelenskyy, in Oslo to repair US relations, said he discussed with Secretary of State Marco Rubio "the situation with Starlink/Starshield, which needs to be restored."
- Oct 20, 2026Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Washington had not pulled back Ukraine's Starlink access but signaled the problem lay with terms of service Kyiv needed to comply with; Kyiv said Washington had resumed intelligence sharing.
Who’s saying what
- Official
- Musk says Starlink is a commercial service limited to civilian or defensive activities and that any speed or usage limits are decided by the US military and ultimately the president.
- Official
- Hegseth says Washington has not pulled back Ukraine's Starlink access and that the issue is the terms of service Kyiv needs to comply with.
- Party
- Zelenskyy says restrictions on Ukraine's Starlink service remain and that the situation "needs to be restored."
- Caution
- A Ukrainian official says SpaceX calls it a technical problem, company contacts say it comes from the White House, and the White House says it is Elon.
Still unverified
Reuters said it could not immediately verify the WSJ report, and Musk, SpaceX and the White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Whether Trump was aware of or discussed the decision beforehand is disputed: some US officials said he was aware, others said he was not, and one person said Musk talked to multiple senior administration officials, including Trump, before imposing the speed limit.