Trump denies ordering Starlink slowdown for Ukrainian military

Summarised from 3 outlets · Updated 16 Oct, 20:32 · Archive

President Trump denies the White House ordered restrictions on Starlink internet access to Ukraine's military this week.

President Trump denied on Friday that the White House ordered restrictions on Starlink's military-grade service (Starshield) to Ukraine this week. "I didn't do that. No, we didn't do that at all," Trump told reporters. "I think it's probably functioning, from what I understand."

Ukrainian officials said SpaceX had restricted use of Starshield without warning on Tuesday and Wednesday, impairing some military operations and defences against Russian attacks. The restrictions cut off connectivity for drones or vehicles travelling above 160 kilometres per hour. Serhii Beskrestnov, an advisor to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, said the armed forces did not receive warning and the restrictions led to mission failures.

Reuters reported on Thursday that the White House had ordered the slowdown, citing two US officials and a Western official. A congressional source confirmed the report to the New York Post. However, an administration official said the White House gave no such instructions, attributing the move to "Pentagon freelancing". SpaceX CEO Elon Musk wrote on X that "Starshield systems are owned and controlled by the US government", appearing to pin responsibility on the government rather than SpaceX.

The restrictions come amid rising tensions between Trump and Zelensky over Ukraine's attacks on Russian oil refineries and Trump's temporary waiver of sanctions on Russian diesel.

How it is being reported

• Trump denies limiting Ukraine access to Starlink networkSpeed curbs limited Ukraine's defences against deadly Russian attacks on Tuesday night.BBC World · 16 Oct, 20:33
• Trump says White House didn't order Starlink restrictions in UkraineUkrainian officials complained this week that SpaceX had limited internet connectivity without advance notice.CNBC · 16 Oct, 19:27
• Trump denies restricting Ukraine’s access to Starlink — despite fingers pointing at White House“I didn’t do that. No, we didn't do that at all. In fact, I don't even think it was slowed down from what I understood," Trump told reporters.New York Post · 16 Oct, 19:14

In this story: Donald Trump · Volodymyr Zelensky · Elon Musk · Ukraine · SpaceX · White House

This summary was written by AI from the headlines and standfirsts above, and states as fact only what at least two outlets report. How we use AI · Report a problem