Trump and Musk deny ordering Ukraine Starshield slowdown

Ukraine’s military lost access to the SpaceX‑built Starshield satellite network for vehicles moving faster than 100 miles per hour. The outage happened while President Trump urged Ukraine to stop attacks on Russian oil refineries. The cut left Ukrainian forces unable to track fast drones and other aircraft, reducing their ability to hit Russian targets. Musk said the limits were set by the U.S. military and the president, not by him.

Denials and blame

White House officials first said they had no knowledge of a request. Later, Reuters reported that two U.S. officials said the order came from the White House. Trump denied any role and said it was not his or Musk’s decision. Musk also posted on X that any speed limits were decided by the U.S. government, while later he urged Ukrainian President Zelenskyy to leave the country.

The controversy could hurt U.S. credibility with European allies. Zelenskyy said speed limits were eased, not removed, after a meeting of EU leaders. The incident shows that even military systems built by private companies can be controlled by the U.S. government, raising doubts about the reliability of U.S. technology for allies.