In brief
Elon Musk, owner of SpaceX, tweeted that Washington sets the limitations on Ukraine’s Starlink connectivity, refusing to take responsibility for new speed caps that hamper Ukraine’s drone operations. The caps, announced Tuesday night, limited satellites to 100mph, cutting off faster weapons from the network. Ukraine’s defence officials argue the slowdown is linked to stalled U.S.–Ukraine talks and insist on lifting the restriction. Musk clarified Starshield is U.S.‑controlled and flagged that Starlink is for civilian and defensive use, not offensive war operations. The U.S. government has yet to comment.
U.S. tech pioneer Elon Musk made headlines Tuesday night when he clarified that the United States—not his company—sets restrictions on Ukraine’s use of his satellite network. The slowdown, which limited data speed to 100 miles per hour, hit Ukrainian drones that rely on Starlink for real‑time targeting and communications.
Militaries across the world use SpaceX’s Starlink to patch the internet in remote or damaged areas. In Ukraine, the service has become essential for coordinating artillery fire and shielding airspace. The new ceiling meant any weapon traveling faster than 160 kilometres an hour could no longer stay connected, a blow that Ukrainian forces described as a “weapon of war.”
“Any limits on speed or usage are decided by the U.S. military and ultimately the President,” Musk wrote on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter. He added that Starshield, the military‑grade variant of the service, is owned and managed by the U.S. government, and that it “cannot be used for offensive military action” because that would breach corporate policy.
Ukraine’s former defence minister Mykhailo Fedorov praised Musk for the partial restoration of service by Wednesday. He called lifting the speed limit “critical” for Ukraine’s defence and asked Musk for continued support, before Musk reiterated that control rests with Washington.
Ukrainian advisers said the slowdown was no accident, linking it to a tense back‑and‑forth between Kyiv and Washington over energy and intelligence sharing. Russia’s overnight missile strikes late on Tuesday further strained communication corridors, leaving hundreds of thousands of civilians without power or warning of incoming drones.
The U.S. has yet to issue an official statement on the matter, while the Starlink network itself continues to relay data across the conflict zone. After the initial drop, a government‑controlled connection was re‑established partially by evening, but concerns remain over the reliability of satellite links during wartime.
