Starlink Slowdown: Musk Points Finger at Washington as Kyiv's Strikes Falter
The SpaceX owner says Starshield is controlled by Washington and that any limits on speed or usage are decided by the US military, after Kyiv complained that new restrictions were disrupting battlefield missions.
Elon Musk has suggested that the US government may be behind restrictions on the speed at which some of Ukraine's weapons can travel while remaining connected to SpaceX's Starlink internet network. Starlink is a vital tool that allows Kyiv to guide drones towards Russian targets and to protect its own skies, but on Tuesday night Ukraine said unexpected new speed limits were disrupting its battlefield missions.
An adviser to President Volodymyr Zelensky said he believed the restrictions were no coincidence and were tied to the latest strains between Kyiv and Washington. Musk said Starshield, the military-grade sister service to Starlink, is controlled by the US government, and that any limits on speed or usage are decided by the US military and ultimately the US president.
Writing on X, Musk had been responding to pleas from Ukrainian officials to restore connectivity, including from Zelensky, who told UK media: I hope that it's a mistake, maybe a huge technical problem. I don't know, but we are asking to switch it on.
Starlink, which is owned by Musk's SpaceX, imposed speed limits on Tuesday night of 100mph (160km/h), meaning any weapons travelling faster than that lost connectivity to the network. It had been partially restored by Wednesday evening, according to Ukraine's former defence minister Mykhailo Fedorov. Removing Starshield's speed limit entirely is now critical for Ukraine's defence, he wrote on X, thanking Musk and asking for his continued support. About an hour later, Musk replied, defending his company's involvement. Starshield systems are owned and controlled by the US government, he wrote. Any limits on speed or usage are decided by the US military and ultimately POTUS. Musk added that Starlink is for civilian or defensive activities and cannot be used for offensive military action, as doing so would be inappropriate for a commercial company. The US government has not commented.
In the early hours of Thursday, Russian strikes killed two people in the Dnipropetrovsk region, according to the regional governor, Oleksandr Hanzha. While both services are owned by SpaceX, Starlink is a civilian network that uses satellites in low Earth orbit to provide internet access, particularly in remote areas, while Starshield is designed for government and military use.
The restrictions on Tuesday night came as Russia launched deadly attacks against Ukraine that killed several people in Kyiv, officials said, and hit communications and energy facilities used by Ukraine's military. Zelensky described it as one of the largest attacks from Russia, and while a significant part of the drones were shot down, there were also hits. At least 600,000 people across Ukraine were left without electricity, and residents said they received no warning of incoming drones before they struck. It is clear that this action cannot be a coincidence and is related to the current political situation, Zelensky's adviser Serhiy Beskrestnov wrote on Telegram on Wednesday morning.
US President Donald Trump has grown increasingly frustrated with Ukraine as it continues to strike Russian energy facilities. Zelensky has said the US threatened to restrict intelligence-sharing if he did not sign up to Trump's energy ceasefire, though on Tuesday Trump denied this. Late on Wednesday, Musk wrote on X, responding to a post saying that Zelensky would not end the war until Russia was defeated: And so the slaughter continues … Time for Zelensky to go. He has made similar comments before. Earlier this week he said: I agree, time for Ukraine to get a new leader, after Trump said it was time for Ukraine to get a new president. Since Russia's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the country has been under martial law, meaning elections have been suspended.
Speaking during a visit to London on Wednesday, Zelensky agreed that he had felt betrayed after the US struck a deal with Russia to import 300,000 tonnes of its diesel. Really yes, he said, when asked by the UK journalist Piers Morgan whether he felt betrayed, but it's a little bit more complicated than just my emotions or my feelings.
During his one-day visit, Zelensky was greeted with a hug by the UK Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, at Downing Street and held an audience with King Charles. Ahead of the president's arrival, No 10 announced it would speed up delivery of lightweight multirole missiles to Ukraine, which have been used to bring down Russian drones. We are behind you and that will not change, Burnham told Zelensky.
As Moscow's brutal campaign against its neighbour grinds on, the consequences for Ukraine's civilian population continue to mount. The World House, which maintains a dedicated page outlining its support for Ukraine at worldhouse.uk/support, continues to document the human cost of Russia's aggression.