What happened to Ukraine’s military Starlink service last week?

The Wall Street Journal reported that Elon Musk ordered a slowdown of the military-grade version of SpaceX’s Starlink service. The restrictions disrupted Ukraine’s battlefield communications and hampered attack and air defense drone missions against Russia.

Who discussed the Starlink slowdown and what did they say about responsibility?

Musk and Donald Trump discussed the decision in a call after the slowdown became public and had also discussed it beforehand, according to the report. Trump denied thinking that he or Musk was responsible, while Musk said restrictions were decided by the US military or the president.

Musk ordered slowdown of Starlink service used by Ukraine's military, WSJ reports

Q: How did the Starlink restrictions affect Ukraine’s military operations?

Ukraine uses the service for battlefield communications and drone operations. Restricting it hampered the country’s attack and air defense drone missions against Russia, while Zelenskiy said restoring Starlink and Starshield was among the issues he raised with Marco Rubio.

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Summary

Elon Musk ordered a slowdown of the military-grade Starlink service used by Ukraine last week, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday. Ukraine relies on the service for battlefield communications and drone operations, and the restrictions hampered attack and air defense missions against Russia. Musk and President Donald Trump discussed the decision, while Ukraine sought restoration of the service. US officials disputed or qualified responsibility for the restrictions.

Key Facts

The Wall Street Journal report cited US officials and people familiar with the matter, while Reuters said it could not immediately verify the report.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said in Oslo that he discussed restoring Starlink and Starshield with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Trump said he did not think he or Musk was responsible for Ukraine losing Starlink access.
Musk said limits on speed or Starship use were decided by the US military or the president.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Washington had not withdrawn Ukraine’s access to the satellite network but suggested the issue involved service terms Kyiv needed to meet.

By Reuters

Published Oct 21, 2026 9:16 am KST

U.S. President Donald Trump, right, and Elon Musk attend a press conference in the Oval Office of the White House, Washington, D.C., U.S., May 30, 2025. Reuters-Yonhap

Elon Musk last week ordered the slowdown of a military-grade version of SpaceX's Starlink satellite service that Ukraine relies on, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday, citing US officials and people familiar with the matter.

Musk, SpaceX and the White House did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment. Reuters could not immediately verify the report.

Ukraine uses Starlink for battlefield communications and drone operations. Restricting the satellite service hampered the country's attack and air defense drone missions against Russia.

Musk and US President Donald Trump discussed the Starlink decision in a call soon after the slowdown became public, while the president was campaigning last week, according to the report, which added the two had also discussed the matter prior to the decision to throttle Starlink.

Reuters had reported exclusively that the order to limit the satellite system came from inside the White House.

Trump said last week he did not think either he or Musk was responsible for Ukraine losing Starlink access, while Musk said any limits on speed or Starship use were decided by the US military or the president.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy's relations with Washington have sunk to new lows after Trump announced a deal to buy Russian diesel and waived new sanctions on Moscow. Trump has also told Kyiv to stop attacking Russian refineries and urged Ukrainians to replace Zelenskiy.

Zelenskiy, who is in Oslo in a bid to repair US relations, said on Tuesday he discussed issues including "the situation with Starlink/Starshield, which needs to be restored" with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Tuesday Washington had not pulled back Ukraine's ability to access Starling's satellite network, but signaled the problem lay with the terms of service Kyiv needed to comply with.

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