Elon Musk said on Saturday that his company SpaceX had throttled the Starlink satellite internet service in Ukraine. He spoke out after Kyiv said the restrictions, which had disrupted front-line operations against Russia, had been lifted.
His post on X ended more than a week of confusion over who ordered the limits on Starlink in Ukraine. It also showed how much a private company can affect the military communications of a country at war.
Full service returned only after President Donald Trump confirmed on Saturday that he had personally asked Musk to ease the restrictions. US lawmakers from both parties are now calling for a formal investigation into Musk and SpaceX, CNBC reported.
What Musk said about the drone strikes
In his post, Musk said Ukraine's military had violated Starlink's terms of service by using the civilian commercial network for offensive drone strikes to kill people. He said such use had never been allowed. He wrote that "that loophole was closed last week."
Musk maintained that the US government controlled any changes made to Starshield, the military-grade version of Starlink, according to the Associated Press. The AP describes Starshield as the backbone of Ukraine's drone operations and communications.
Musk also defended SpaceX's role in supporting Ukraine's defenses since Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022. CNBC reported that he wrote SpaceX had done more to defend Ukraine than any other private company on Earth.
Starlink is SpaceX's broader commercial satellite internet network. Starshield is the company's government service built on Starlink technology. SpaceX did not immediately respond to CNBC's request for comment.
How the Starshield speed limits hit Ukraine's drones
Ukrainian officials have accused SpaceX since Oct. 14 of imposing speed limits on Starshield, CNBC reported. They said any drone traveling above 100 mph lost its connection, which disrupted some missions.
The restrictions alarmed Ukraine's military and government officials, and commanders reported lost drones and disrupted missions, the AP reported.
As recently as Friday, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy wrote on X that the restrictions were still in place and that speeds had not been restored. He said things had become harder partly because of the Starlink and Starshield speed limits, but that the front line was holding, according to CNBC. He also said Ukraine was still waiting for the United States to deliver missile interceptors that had already been agreed.
Dmitri Alperovitch, chairman of the Silverado Policy Accelerator, a Washington think tank focused on energy, defense technology and global trade, told CNBC that Ukraine's Starshield terminals were still having problems on Friday.
Ukraine confirms restored speeds
On Saturday, Zelenskyy said access to Starlink and Starshield had returned to the speeds Ukraine had before the restrictions. He said restoration began overnight and was sufficient by Saturday morning, the AP reported. He added that this improved front-line logistics and defense against Russia's jet-powered Shahed drones.
Ukraine's Ministry of Defense said its monitoring systems "officially record the restoration of the speed of Starlink/Starshield." It said the connection stays stable while equipment is moving at more than 400 km/h (249 miles per hour), according to CNBC. The ministry said it continues to monitor the systems.
Defense Minister Yevhenii Khmara credited direct dialogue and Zelenskyy's diplomacy with Washington. He said the result mattered most for the front, the military, drone operations, logistics and communications.
Who ordered the throttling: conflicting accounts in Washington
Accounts of the US government's role have differed sharply. Before Saturday, Musk had said in a social media post that the US government was responsible for the restrictions, while Trump said he had no knowledge of them, CNBC reported.
Speaking to reporters in Florida on Saturday, Trump confirmed a Wall Street Journal report from earlier in the week that he had asked Musk to ease the limits. "I have spoken to Elon Musk," he said.
According to the AP, Trump has maintained that he did not order the throttling, while also saying Musk should not be blamed. Vice President JD Vance has hinted at White House coordination with Musk. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth have denied any administration involvement, the AP reported.
The dispute has added to strain between Kyiv and Washington. The relationship was already tense over Trump's reported deal with Moscow on Russian diesel imports, which Ukraine viewed as a betrayal, according to the AP.
The restoration also comes during a new US diplomatic push to end the war. Russia agreed on Wednesday to resume three-way negotiations with Washington and Kyiv next month. On Friday, Kyiv and Moscow agreed to a localized ceasefire around Oleshky, a Russian-occupied town in Ukraine's southern Kherson region. First lady Melania Trump brokered that agreement, the AP reported.
The fighting continued on Saturday. Local officials said a missile attack on the city of Lozova in the Kharkiv region killed one man and wounded two others. Ukraine's General Staff said its forces struck a chemical plant in the Russian city of Tolyatti that produces materials used in rocket fuel, and an electronics plant in Oryol.
In Washington, the next test is congressional. Lawmakers from both parties have called for a formal probe into what CNBC described as alleged unilateral changes SpaceX made to its services in Ukraine.