Tech billionaire Elon Musk has ordered the slowdown of a military-grade version of SpaceX’s Starlink satellite service that Ukraine relies on, the Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday, citing U.S. officials.
Kyiv uses Starlink for battlefield communications and drone operations. Restricting service means restricting the country’s attack and defense missions against Russia.
Last week, Musk capped the speeds at which Ukrainian hardware could stay connected to the satellite network, the report said, citing unnamed sources. The move rendered some offensive drones and interceptors virtually useless, he added.
Two people said Newspaper that Musk and US President Donald Trump discussed the Starlink decision on a call shortly after the slowdown became public.
Some U.S. officials, the report said, believed Musk acted unilaterally and that Trump did not specifically order retaliation against Ukraine.
However, a person familiar with the situation said Musk spoke with several senior administration officials, including Trump, before imposing the speed limit.
Both Musk and Trump have expressed anger at Ukraine for attacking Russian diesel refineries in recent weeks, which the president blames for high energy prices.
The report also follows Trump’s comments last week that he did not think he nor Musk were responsible for Ukraine losing access to Starlink.
Musk had said that any speed or usage limits were decided by the US military or the president.
Musk, SpaceX and the White House have not yet responded to the report.
U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff is expected to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday after what a U.S. official called “constructive” talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Norway, as Trump said it was time for Ukraine to end the war.
Edited by: Roshni Majumdar
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