Musk Accused of Ordering Ukraine Starlink Slowdown as U.S. Lawmakers Demand Probe
Summary
- Reports said Elon Musk personally ordered limits on the speed of Starlink used by the Ukrainian military.
- Democratic lawmakers said the restrictions disrupted Ukrainian military defense and attack operations using drones, and are calling for a congressional investigation.
- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said he discussed access to Starlink and expressed a positive view of talks between the two countries.
Forecast Trend Report by Period
Questions are mounting in Washington after reports that Elon Musk, chief executive officer of SpaceX, personally ordered limits on the speed of the Starlink satellite internet service used by the Ukrainian military.
Bloomberg reported on October 20, citing the Wall Street Journal, that a recent drop in Starlink performance in Ukraine came at Musk’s direction, according to U.S. government officials and others cited by the newspaper. The limits reportedly disrupted Ukrainian military defense and attack operations using drones.
The Journal said Musk discussed the issue with Trump administration officials before the Starlink restrictions became public. After the slowdown was disclosed, he also discussed the matter with President Donald Trump, the report said.
The allegations surfaced as the Trump administration presses Ukraine to halt attacks on Russian oil-refining facilities. Trump has recently blamed Ukraine for higher diesel prices and urged Kyiv to stop striking Russian energy infrastructure. Earlier in October, he announced an agreement with Russian President Vladimir Putin on supplies of Russian diesel to the U.S. and international markets.
Democratic lawmakers reacted sharply, saying the Starlink restrictions affected Ukraine’s military operations. Representative Adam Smith, the top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, criticized Musk and Trump, while Senator Adam Schiff called for a formal congressional investigation.
Schiff said a decision to limit Starlink’s speed and accessibility could affect matters of life and death for Ukrainians. He urged the Senate to open a full investigation and said Musk should appear before Congress to testify under oath. The U.S. Department of Defense declined to comment on the report. A Pentagon official had previously said there had been no change in U.S. policy toward Ukraine.
Separately, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said in a Bloomberg interview on October 18 that Trump was trying to force Ukraine to surrender to Russia. But after meeting U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff in Oslo, Norway, on October 20, Zelenskiy said they discussed intelligence sharing and access to Starlink, and he expressed a positive view on talks between the two countries.
