SpaceX restricted Ukraine’s Starlink service because the country’s military used it for offensive drone strikes, Elon Musk said on X, according to BBC World. The claim came after Kyiv said the connection had been restored, in a Starlink Ukraine restriction dispute that is entangled with a wider row between Kyiv and Washington over strikes on Russian oil infrastructure.
Musk said Ukraine’s military violated Starlink terms of service by using it for offensive drone strikes to kill people, and that the loophole was closed last week, according to BBC World. He also denied being responsible for a simultaneous problem with Starshield, saying it is a different system controlled by the US government.
Zelenskyy said Starlink and Starshield had resumed operations at pre-restriction speeds, and thanked Trump and the US State Department for resolving the issue, according to the Guardian World. Earlier, the Guardian reported, sudden speed restrictions capped Starlink terminal operations at about 160km/h and led to the failure of several Ukrainian combat missions earlier this month.
Ukrainian presidential adviser Serhii Beskrestnov said Starlink terminals in Ukraine have a speed restriction of 70-90km/h and do not work on Russian territory, so commercial Starlink cannot be used for deep strikes, according to BBC World. Defence Minister Yevhenii Khmara said the military was recording a stable connection, with drones able to reach speeds above 400km/h.
The restriction coincided with a diplomatic standoff between Zelenskyy and Trump over Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries, which Kyiv says fund Moscow’s war effort. Zelenskyy said the US had also threatened to withdraw intelligence sharing if the strikes did not stop, a claim Trump denied.
The sources disagree on who imposed the restrictions. Musk said Starshield is controlled by the US military and ultimately the president, and that a loophole in Starlink terms was closed. Zelenskyy said the restriction was a message from the American government that SpaceX carried out. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the president does not direct Starlink decisions. Trump said it was not him and that he did not think it was Musk.
The sources also disagree on whether service is fully back. Trump said on Thursday the service was running again at full speed. A European official speaking to the Associated Press denied that the service was fully functioning, while Ukraine’s government later said the connection was stable.
The Japan Times reported that Starshield’s problems occurred after Trump announced a deal to buy Russian diesel, but only a headline and short excerpt were available, so that account is thin.
Several key points remain unconfirmed. Kyiv has not officially commented on Musk’s latest claim, and Ukraine’s defence ministry and general staff gave no immediate comment. SpaceX has not explained why it made the change last week. No independent source has confirmed current Starlink speeds or the claimed loophole closure, and Musk’s claim that Ukraine violated the terms is not verified.
Trump has said he may speak to Musk if the service is not fixed, but no such conversation has been reported. Ukraine’s response to Musk’s claim and any SpaceX explanation are still pending, and the broader Washington-Kyiv dispute over oil strikes and intelligence sharing continues.
Sources
This article was written with AI assistance from the published reporting listed above. It is part of the World Brief daily news podcast.